Love, Loyalty, and Lies
by shellieflower22
Summary: Aria Blackwood is a 16 year old girl attending J. Roch Academy. But here's the catch: The academy is a spy school for agents in training. Aria is assigned to protect UK boy band One Direction; without revealing her true identity. And she's not allowed to fall in love. Where do loyalties lie? Will the lies break apart what love they develop? Find out in Love, Loyalty, and Lies.
1. Chapter 1 Setting

**Hey guys this is my first story ever so please bare with me! I would really appreciate any reviews so thanks in advance! btw I am aware that this like breaks the guidelines to have real people but there are tons of other stories doing it too so im not that concerned. DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own One Direction (obviously!) thanks xx :)**

I'm in the three story library using one of the brand new computers. It's a one-fourth of an inch glass rectangle mounted on a titanium arm on top of a platform. A card reader is attached to the right side. I quickly check my shoulders and swipe the card I'd... 'borrowed' from the official at the service desk. She was old and frankly not fit for the job. It was like taking candy from a baby- the woman didn't even look up from her solitaire game.

The glass lights up almost as if its screen and a log-in box flashes up. The old lady's profile picture appears next to her name:

User: Loretta Beckner

Password:

I tap the empty block with my index finger and the arm angles the surface so that I can type on it. My fingers do a funny dance over the touch screen keyboard as I think of possibilities for Loretta's password.

I think back to Technologies and Decoding class. _Passwords... Oh yes!_ Most common is for the user to use their pets name, or the pet's name followed by '123'. _Ohh gosh... What was that Corgi's name she was always bragging about? Sniffles? Sna- no, Snu... Snuffles!_ I type 'Snuffles123' and hit enter. A desktop appears. _Score! I guess that class paid off after all..._

I find a small icon in the right top corner and tap it. It looks like the Internet Explorer icon but purple and with a 'D' instead of an 'e'. We refer to it simply as "The Database". It's basically a GINOURMOUS database with profiles of everyone in the world; who they are, what they do, where they are, when they were born, etc. You can search the whole system or narrow your search by selecting sub-categories. First choose a country then within that you can select specific traits or information about the person you are searching for.

_Do I really want to do this? What if it's bad?_ I think to myself. _Yes. You've been wanting to do this for like, ever!_

I take a breath and type in my own name without double checking it. Several results pop up but my name is near the top, I guess agents get priority. Next to your name is the flag of the country you are a resident of and your age. The American flag and 16 yrs is displayed next to mine. I tap it and it highlights green. My whole portfolio is shown and from what I can tell, it scrolls down quite a bit.

Full name: Aria Rose Blackwood  
DOB: 03/16/1994  
Place of birth: St. Drew's Hospital, Alexandria, Virginia, United States  
Age: 16 years  
Occupation (if any): Agent/student  
Agent type: - (in training)  
Agent level: student  
School (if enrolled): J. Roch Academy aka. SSI Academy  
Year/Class: Junior, Class of 2014  
Current residence: J. Roch Academy, 4102 West St., Washington DC, 2004, United States of America  
Father's residence: 4991 Bishop Lane, Alexandria, Virginia 22314, United States of America  
Immediate family: (parents divorced in July 2010 and mother reverted back to her maiden surname. Children use their mother's surname)  
Mother: Patricia Lacey Blackwood, alive  
Father: William Jasper Roch, alive  
Brother: Michael Steven Blackwood, alive

I keep scrolling down until-

SSI ACADEMY NOTES for Aria Blackwood:

Overall behavior: Good. Occasionally disobeys orders.  
Grades: Averages a high A in all classes, continuously breaks records on both academic and physical training exams/exercises.  
Past assignments: Tails, extracted files from President of U.S.  
CURRENT ASSIGNMENT: -Pending- will be assigned no later than 11:59pm east coast time on Thursday, December 12th.

_WHAT._ I check the silver bracelet/watch on my left wrist. It is Thursday. The 12th of December. 3:05pm... I hear someone enter the library and quickly close the database and log off of the computer. Footsteps come towards me and I abruptly get up and push my chair in, wanting to avoid any confrontation. I needed to talk to my bestie, Molly. Maybe she knows what's going on here...

I turn to walk out of the library but instead bump into a tall solid... Principal Hayes? _Shit._

"Agent Blackwood, I thought I would find you here," he greets me. _Oh puhleez; you _knew_ exactly where I was and am all the time!_

"Yessir," I answer with a nervous smile. _Did he see what I was doing on the computer?_

"I'm here to notify you about a new assignment. I'm sorry about the short notice; you leave for the airport in two hours."

"Airport?" I say incredulously. "Where exactly am I going? Sir?"

"Calm yourself, Agent. Your flight departs out of Reagan International at 19:10. You should arrive in London at approximately 8:10. 5 hours ahead of east coast time, as you should know."

And I do know. I do the math in my head; it'll seem like 3am. _Ugh._

"So a man named Joshua will be waiting for you after you arrive and go through customs and security. He is your taxi driver and will take you to your hotel. We already paid him and booked a rather nice suite for you, so you better appreciate it. You'll be joining a band on tour-"

"A band? What band?" I interrupted. _What if it's One Direction! Ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh!_

"I'm sure you are aware of the UK boy band called-"

"ONE DIRECTION! Is it One Direction?"


	2. Chapter 2 the assignment

**Second chapter… sorry I originally had this written on my iPod in the notes and it seemed so much longer! Sorry :( next chapter I'll probably write more… thanks for reading xx**

"No, The Wanted," Principal Hayes say with an emotionless expression. I literally tear up (not that I have anything against them, but, come on! It's One Direction we're talkin about here!). Then he cracks a grin, "Yes, it's One Direction."

I let out a whoop, "So I get to stay with them for like, all of their summer tour?"

"Yes. And if you do a good job then maybe even next summer or perhaps, if you are really good, then full time. You are kind of like their personal body guard. Protect them at all costs. Also keep their private lives private if you can, the paparazzi can take its toll on everyone.

"And for as much time as possible, I want you to stay out of the public eye. The fans might get jealous, do crazy things. Dangerous things. Of course you can't stay secret forever, I doubt even a week but try not to draw attention to yourself. For example, dating one of boys," he coughs. "And such... Also you have to have a fake identity."

"What? But if they find out then they won't trust me anymore! C'mon what difference does it make?"

"Aria! They can't know. They might take you being a 'spy' in the wrong way, who knows what they'd do then. If information about your real identity leaks out then your career is as good as done."

I frown, "Well what if they don't take it the wrong way? Can I at least keep my name?"

"It's just too risky. And no!"

"No; I'm not going unless you let me use my name. If they are calling me something else and I don't respond then what do I tell them? 'Oh, uh, sorry I forgot my own name...'" I argue hoping that he won't just choose someone else.

"Fine," he sighs reluctantly. "Let me add to your profile, 'Stubborn and talks back.' I know you were looking at The Database. Also I think Ms. Loretta is looking for her card..." he says only half joking.

_Damn! This old man is good... _I pout, "I think it's in her pocket."

Then I walk past Principal Hayes, in front of Loretta Beckner's desk, and silently slip the card into her skirt pocket as she bends over to check the floor, all in the blink of an eye. I push through the revolving doors and see Principal Hayes chuckling in the reflection of the glass.

Roughly four hours later at 19:13 (which is 7:13pm) I'm sitting in first class and the jet takes off. I turn on my iPod and listen to One Direction. _Screw the rules, keeping my electronics on won't hurt anything._ Then I reach under the chair in front of mine and shuffle through my new Coach handbag that I'd gotten for Christmas. I pull out 6 manila folders and open the first one. I pull my legs up so the crooks of my knees are over the arm of the empty seat next to me with my back against the wall so nobody can read the files.

Just one sheet is in the folder and it has my whole identity:

Name: Aria Blackwood (happy? -Principal H)

I smile to myself, _Yes!_ My birthday is the same and the interests for my cover are similar to my own, which was surely done on purpose so I would have an easier time memorizing it.

Interests: Soccer, running, photography, singing, traveling

Current residence: 3191 Sterling Avenue, Birmingham, West Midlands B19, UK (We are just renting the small flat for the summer, it's already furnished and the key and garage code is in the zipper pocket of your bag. -P. H.)

I check the pocket and pull out a small white and pink key on a keychain with a metal "A" embellished with rhinestones. On the back of the A there's a number that I can only assume is the code: 4102. It's also the address for my school.

Personality: girly, shy, and does NOT eat like a pig. (Please don't hate me. -P. H.)

Almost the opposite of myself. _Oh God. This is gonna be hard._

Note:  
Agent Blackwood,  
After you reach your hotel I'll send you texts with information on what to do next. The boys have a security guard named Paul, currently he is the only person who should know your true identity and reason for being there. If anything concerning other agents or the agency comes up, contact somebody here first. I'm afraid Paul won't be much help; the life of a security guard is very different from that of an agent. As you may have already noticed, you have a European passport and are classified as a citizen of Europe. You must have a British accent, and I don't think it'd be easy to keep one up so I've provided you with a translator (in the zipper pocket as well). It's the newest of its kind and works excellently. It's already programmed to an English accent so all you have to do is turn it on and press it on near the back of your throat. It stays on well but if you happen to swallow it then there are extras in your wallet. Stay safe. Keep them safe. -Principal Hayes

For the next 7 hours I read the rest of the folders (profiles for each of the boys), sleep, and eat (not exactly in that order- eating comes before, in between, and after everything). I sigh, _Might as well eat as much as I can now so I don't starve over the next few days. Pshaww who am I kidding? Screw that element of the personality. I can eat as long as I work it off later._

I go to the bathroom before we land to try and install the weird translator in my throat. It is a small clear silicone circle with a tiny microchip inside. I squeeze it between my index finger and thumb and a small green light blinks. I press it into the back of my throat and almost gag. It pinches and my eyes water up immediately. After about 20 seconds the pain subsides and I can't feel it at all. I open my mouth and can't see any evidence of the device. _The light must turn off after it's installed correctly._ I figure out.

"Hello, One Direction," I whisper into the mirror with my newly acquired British accent. I love it.


	3. Chapter 3 Room Service

About 45 minutes later my taxi driver, Joshua, pulls up in front of a super ritzy looking hotel. I had gotten through security and customs just fine, no problems with my fake passport.

"Day-um…" I say as I exhale.

Joshua chuckles and hands me his business card, "I'll be around so if you need me just gimme a call, hun."

"Thank you so much!" I say as he unloads my 2 suitcases from the trunk. That was all I was allowed to bring and they expect me to have enough stuff for the whole summer? Hell no! _I'm going to need to go shopping…_

A man in a suit with a red tie holds a huge gold door open for me and nods his head towards me.

"Thanks," I manage to say before my breath is taken away at the sight of the lobby. _Oh mah Lord._ A large round velvet rug covers most of the white marble floor and a ginourmous diamond chandelier sparkles from the incredibly high ceiling. A grand staircase goes up to the center of the first floor and I assume the other staircases are located at both ends of the hallways that branch off left and right. As I walk towards the mahogany check-in counters, the bellhop takes both of my pink floral Vera Bradley suitcases and loads them onto a luggage cart. I quickly check-in and find that the bellhop already rolled away my bags.

_Oh my God! Where the hell did he take them? _I obviously don't travel enough… By the time I go up a glass elevator in the right corner of the lobby and find my PENTHOUSE (YES, I said penthouse!) on the top and tenth floor, my luggage is waiting for me outside of my door. I rummage around in my handbag until I pull out my room key and unlock the door. I push through dragging my bags behind me and am absolutely floored. I swear the hotel room is bigger than my fucking house (well my dad's house, technically).

There is a fully equipped kitchen with marble counters to my left and I automatically open the huge stainless steel fridge. I grab a Sprite. _Wow, the place even comes with food. I think I've died and gone to heaven._ Past the island bar I see a modern and nicely furnished living room complete with a huge flat screen TV. I run over and plop myself onto a couch. I almost instantly begin to sink into the plush cushions, making me giggle. Then I turn and notice the stairs to my right. They lead up to what looks like a loft. Curious, I continue upstairs until I find an absolutely gorgeous bedroom. The comforter is blue satin and a diamond chandelier (what is up with these people and diamonds?) hangs in the center of the ceiling. There is even an iPod dock which I assume is connected to the speakers that are placed around the house.

I can't help myself. I run downstairs and lug all of my bags up to the bedroom. I pull out my iPod and put it in the dock. I turn up the volume and turn on the dock (which also happened to be a clock). Katy Perry blasts out all around my penthouse.

_Kiss me, k-k-kiss me.  
Infect me with your love and fill me with your poison.  
Take me, t-t-take me,  
Wanna be a victim, ready for abduction._

I sing along loudly until the time actually registers in mind. 10:00am. _Wait! What time am I supposed to meet the boys? _I rapidly check my phone for messages from anyone at the agency. Then I am pleasantly surprised by the series of texts I'd gotten from Molly.

**Molly Dolly/Mrs. Styles/honey bunny:** heyy hun, so ur supposed to be in your hotel by now, if ur not… GET THERE. ;) haha well Mr. farty pants Hayes wants me to text u for him. Soo the fact is you should meet up with the boys by 10:30am cuz apparently they have 2 b places at like 11 so u need to meet them by then

I reply quickly, my fingers skitter across the touch screen of my iPhone.

**Me: **Ahhahah love yah hun ;) OMG I have 2 shower! Don't distract me love ;D have to look good for these brit boys :)

I unzip one of my bags and pull out a giant toiletries bag. I pull out all of my soaps and start the shower. _Ugh, I feel nasty! I didn't even get to shower last night.._

**Molly Dolly/Mrs. Styles/honey bunny: **Uhmm yeah have I told u how fucking jelly I am of u? Ohmygoshh and 2 think u didn't even know they existed until like a week ago ALL THANKS TO ME. Ur welcome ;) also they r not ALL brits! Niall is irish ;) I bet u don't even know their names :P

The disgusting clothes I've been wearing for at least 24 hours drop to the floor and I text Molly back one last time.

**Me: **Hahah well maybe we can arrange 4 u to come out here? I mite need some girl time.. :) but yeah yeah ok. I DO 2. I studied their profiles on the plane like a good girl! ahaha not really but oooo yumm irish ;) ahaha jk :P ok brb shower DON'T MISS ME 2 MUCH ;)

I step under the steaming stream of water and let it wash away my jittery feelings as well as all the grime I've accumulated. I sing along with Justin Bieber as I smother shampoo in my long thick hair.

_Baby, baby, baby oohhh like,  
Baby, baby, baby nooo like  
Baby, baby, baby oohhh,  
I thought you'd always be mine._

I rinse the soap out and slather a glob of conditioner in it. A few minutes later I'm almost done just washing my face and practically having a concert in the shower. Yeah, that's how I roll.

"Myyy heart's stereo,  
it beats for you so listen close.  
Hear my thoughts in every no-o-ote.

Maaake me your radio,  
and turn me up when you feel low.  
This melody was meant for you,  
just sing along to my stereo.

Oh-ohohh-" My singing gets cut off by a loud noise downstairs.

I freeze. I could almost swear I heard knocking. _Damn music…_ I rinse all remains of soap and clamber out of the shower. At least I have enough sense to grab a towel because I'm practically a popsicle by the time I reach my iPod and pause my jam. I hold my breath and listen again. Sure enough there's more knocking. _GAHHH did I not put up the 'do not disturb' sign? _I don't think I did. _Shit. Probably just room service… _I try to convince myself. I really don't care if the stupid maid sees me in a towel with dripping wet hair so without a second thought I fling open the door. It's definitely not a maid.

_Fuckkk… _is all I can think as a smirk forms on the extremely attractive young man's face. _I. Am. Fucked._

**Sorry this is mostly the end of like the introduction now we can get to the good stuff :) the boys will be in the next chapter! Please bare with me and review xx thanks!**


	4. Chapter 4 First Impressions

"Hello, love," he says huskily and flashes his dimples at me which, to my annoyance, causes my stomach to get butterflies.

"I.. uhm.. I just thought you were… room service…" I mumble embarrassed. _Da hell? I never get nervous around guys…_

He laughs and wiggles his eyebrows, "Oh I could come in your room if you'd like, beautiful."

My mouth drops open. _How dare he!_ _I'm standing in front him naked only in a bath towel, a very short one mind you, and he has the guts to… to…_

"I was just joking, babe. I'm sorry I didn't realize you were… preoccupied." He says sincerely, running a hand through his unruly dark brown curls. I liked his hair. A lot. _GOD. What am I thinking?_

My cheeks flush red and I find myself staring into his gorgeous green eyes. I snap out of it and return to my regular self, "Well I don't suppose you'd mind waiting a few minutes then, hun?" I wink.

I catch him blushing before he smirks and winks right back, "Of course not, love. I'll be waiting."

"Correction: you'll be waiting in _your own _room," with that I swiftly close the door on his surprised face. _Let's just hope that meeting the other guys won't be as… weird… as that,_ I think to myself.

I run upstairs shed the towel and quickly get dressed in skinny jeans, a striped top, and knit Ugg boots. ( cgi/set?id=54317382). I think about bringing a jacket and everything but decide against it figuring I'd have time to come back to my room after meeting the rest of the guys. I quickly brush through my straight dark brown hair which is still sopping wet and practically freezing my head and neck. I spray my Victoria's Secret PINK fragrance over my body and grab my phone, checking my texts as I leave.

**Molly Dolly/Mrs. Styles/honey bunny: **OMG I WOULD LOVE 2 VISIT. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE :D but haha I think u'd like the irish one… hes into brunettes! Or so I heard ;) ok mr bossy wants to tell you that wherever the boys go ur supposed to go 2… go stalk them babe ;)

**Molly Dolly/Mrs. Styles/honey bunny: **DID U DIE? Babyyy come back ;) haha no seriously who takes 20min showers?

**Me: **No I didn't die, silly. I only just met Harry fucking styles in nothing but a bath towel! GAHH save me :/

**Molly Dolly/Mrs. Styles/honey bunny: ** joking right. JEALOUS.

**Me:** I wish I was… MOLLY I WAS IN A FUCKING TOWEL.

**Molly Dolly/Mrs. Styles/honey bunny: **hahaha oh puuhleez he prob thought it was sexy ;) I gtg physical exam :/ have fun with the boys! Their room is the one 5 doors down and across the hall, room 514. GO GET EM!

I look up to see the dark mahogany door with a gold plate bearing the numbers 514. _This is my_ _fate_, I think and brace myself for awkwardness. I raise my hand to knock but the door swings open before my fist even makes contact. A boy only 3 inches taller than me is standing there with quite an adorable smile and a head of blonde hair.

"You were looking through the peephole that whole time! Boys…" I laugh loudly and give him a genuine smile, muttering the last part. He blushes and I notice his eyes. They are a dazzling blue that just seem to pull me in-

"Sorry, we were quite excited to meet you. Especially after Harry's nice description, yeah?" he laughs glancing at Harry. Harry shifts uncomfortably in his place and I notice a blush creeping up his neck.

I snort. "Well it's very nice to meet you. Niall, right? I'm Aria-" I get cut off by a tight hug and the scent of very attractive cologne. _Damn… I could get used to this, _I think to myself. _But you can't! _Principal Hayes' reminder comes back to me. I don't remember what the punishment is. Probably death or something.

"Yep, I'm Niall. You can call me Nialler though," he says cheerfully with a wink. His Irish accent is extremely sexy. He must've been the one Molly was talking about. She was right, I did like him. NO! Correction: I could easily like him.

Niall steps back and the rest of the boys greet me. A boy with short brown curls hugs me tight catching me off guard.

"Glad to meet you, babe! I'm Liam," he smiles and lets me go.

"You too, hun," I say back grinning. _What is up with them calling me babe? Must be a UK thing…_ I turn to face an equally attractive boy with black hair wearing a red letterman jacket.

"Hello, love. I'm Zayn," he says with a hug.

"Hello, Zayn," I greet him with a flirtatious wink. _If only… I was allowed, _I think suddenly angry at the agency for such ridiculous rules.

Then a very fit (apparently fit means hot in the UK… according to Molly anyways) lad wearing a striped shirt and red pants pushes Zayn away and gets down on one knee in front of me. He begins to sing a song I don't recognize accompanied by over exaggerated arm movement. _What. the. Hell. Weird child…_ He takes a breath then grabs my hand. I give him the 'what the hell is wrong with you' look and I can see he's trying not to burst out laughing. Oh _it's on, Louis Tomlinson._

"Will you marry me, Aria?" he asks as sincerely as he can. I put on my surprised face. Hah.

"Oh my gosh!" I gush. I pull him onto his feet and squeal. "I thought you'd never ask!"

His face. Priceless. His eyes are wide and his mouth is in the shape of an 'o'. I giggle.

"I know I'm way out of a pop-star who is in One Direction slash possibly the most popular band in the world's league, BUT I'm willing to take your hand in marriage because…" I struggle for a reason. "I'm in love with your stripes."

The other boys are cracking up and Louis catches onto my prank. Before I know what's happening he pushes me backwards and trip over… Harry? I'm laying on the ground laughing.

"I can't believe you mofos just _table-topped_ a _girl_ you met like 3 seconds ago!" I say still not over Louis's reactions.

**Harry's POV:**

"I can't believe you mofos just _table-topped_ a _girl_ you met like 3 seconds ago!" Aria says with watering eyes from all the laughing.

I scramble up from where she fell over me and give her a cheeky grin. She rolls her eyes. The first time I saw her today I actually felt butterflies in my stomach. Sure she was in a towel and that might've added to it, but Harry Styles does not go gaga over girls! And there's Aria who I met only 10 minutes ago, yet, I think I have… feelings for her.

I can't help but notice the edge of her shirt had come up revealing her flat tan stomach. _Damn. She's sexayy._ As if she knew what I was thinking she yanked down the hem and brought me back to earth.

"Hey Styles, I know I'm sexy but I think your eyes are getting overwhelmed."

"Not only his eyes!" Zayn and Louis joke at the same time. They high-five each other.

"I do not have a bon-" I start to argue with red cheeks until Paul interrupts.

"Everyone get ready, we're heading into the city to film your video. Take two cars; I'm going with the camera crew. Hurry on! We have like 5 minutes!"

Today we are going to film our music video for "One Thing". _Maybe Aria will get to be in it, too. Wait, what has gotten into you Styles?_

I grab a jacket and scarf and follow Aria out of our room.

**Aria's POV:**

As we file out of the boys' room I mutter something about having to grab my jacket and bag. I head off in the opposite direction and notice someone jogging up behind me. I turn and see Niall come up beside.

"Oi! Wait for me, yeah?" he chuckles.

"Oh hey! You didn't have to come with me you know," I say apologetically cursing in my head. _Asdgrskjl. Why was he so gorgeous._

"I know, babe. Thought you could use the company though," he says sincerely. My heart melts. Wait, no it doesn't. Ok, maybe just a little bit…

"D'awww thanks, hun!" I pat down my pockets and pull out my room key from the left one.

"Voila!"I say laughing. Our rooms were the exact same except theirs I noticed had two bedrooms. I guess someone slept on the couch… Or then again, maybe not.

Niall laughs, "Nice place."

"You want anything to drink? A beer or something…" I trail off looking through the fridge. "They stocked my fridge with tons of drinks… If my dad knew he'd freak." I smirk.

"Sure I'll have one," Niall says and I toss him a Budlight. "You're only sixteen, right?"

"_Only?" _I giggle. "I turn seventeen in less than two months!"

"But you're still underage!"

"They'll never know…" I say with a wink before heading upstairs and grabbing my jacket, scarf and beanie. By the time I return he's almost drained the bottle.

I gasp and grab the bottle out of his hands. I pour the rest in the sink and toss the bottle in the trashcan. His mouth was open, "Wha… you gave it to me!"

I splutter and giggle, "Well… well you should've turned it down… don't want you tipsy for your music video!"

He laughs and just rolls his eyes.

As we reach the stairs I turn to face Niall. "Last one down is a rotten leprechaun!"

He slaps my arm, "What? No elevator?"

"Nope, you obviously need the exercise," I joke patting his stomach. He has rock hard abs and I immediately pull my hand away blushing furiously.

He just chuckles and races ahead of me. "Oh no you don't!" I yell after him before starting to bound down the stairs myself.

When we finally reach the lobby and exit the hotel, Louis is the only one remaining. Niall is huffing and puffing beside me and we both have red cheeks. My hair is probably a mess but it doesn't matter because I won.

"Jesus, what took you guys so long?" he asks. Then I see him take us in and his eyes widen at our appearance. He smirks, "Wow, you two do not waste any time-"

I cut him off with a punch to his shoulder and stick my tongue out at him for good measure. Yes, I just stuck my tongue out at Louis Tomlinson. Niall is blushing furiously from Louis's conclusion so I grab his hand and pull him into the back seat next to me. I'm muttering about immaturity when Louis gets in the driver's seat and is STILL laughing.

When he finally stops he looks at me via rearview mirror and has the audacity to point out, "Well, you never denied it!"

I raise my eyebrows at him, "I'm not like that…"

"I know, love. Just having a bit of fun. I'm figuring out your boundaries," he says wiggling his eyebrows.

Niall scoffs at him and whispers to me, "He's the jokester around here. You sure gave him a surprise when you turned that marriage thing on him!"

I laugh and appreciate Niall's kindness to explain.

"Sooo… what are the other boys like?" I ask wondering about Harry's true personality.

**Niall's POV:**

"Sooo… what are the other boys like?" Aria asks while looking out the window.

"Well, as Lou once put it: Liam's the smart one, Harry's the flirt, and Zayn is vain- not really by the way."

"AND I'M THE LEADER," Louis yells proudly, taking his attention off the road.

"Jesus Christ, Louis!" Aria practically screams. "Focus on the road! I can't believe how scary you can make the slowest drive in the world be."

She looks genuinely scared and I just want to pull her in and hug her close to me but I know better. I hadn't even known her for half an hour yet. We finally park in the woods by a park about 10 minutes after everyone else had arrived.

"What took you so long?" Harry exclaims narrowing his eyes at me and Aria who happened to be standing rather close to me.

"Louis decided that he prefers driving twenty kilometers under the speed limit," Aria replies quickly, throwing Louis under the bus. Not that I blame her. I laugh and relish in the relief she had provided, the last thing I needed was Louis implying to the rest of the boys that Aria and I already had sex. Especially in front of Harry. _That's odd. Harry hasn't had actual feelings for anyone since Caroline. Maybe he was just being protective._ I convince myself. I fancy Aria a lot actually for just meeting her. But I'm pretty sure she doesn't fancy me back. I sigh and feel a hand on my arm.

"You ok, babe?" Aria asks. Her sparkly grey eyes look brighter with her tan complexion and dark hair.

"Yeah, guess I'm just nervous for the video," I lie to her making my heart twinge with guilt.

"Aww don't be, Nialler! It'll be fun! You have nothing to worry about, hun," she reassures me before Liam calls her over.

_Shit. That sure does look like something I need to worry about…_ I run my hand through my hair nervously as Harry walks towards me with clenched fists and a frown. I have a feeling this isn't going to end well.


	5. Chapter 5 One Thing

**Harry's POV:**

"So what's up with you and Aria?" I try to ask casually. I realize my fists are clenched and quickly open them.

"What do you mean? Mate, we met her less than one hour ago!" Niall replies with a raised eyebrow.

"Well it's just that you two seemed awfully close..." I trail off mentally cursing the heat I could feel rising on my cheeks.

"You fancy her!" Niall exclaims.

"What? How could you accuse me of that when I haven't even had a full conversation with her?" I whisper-yell. _I will not fall in love. I will not fall in love. I will not fall in love._

Niall just laughs and whispers back, "You so do! I see the way you look at her! And the one and only Harry Styles was actually getting jeal-"

He gets cut off by our clothing stylist, Caroline Watson. After dragging us into a small lodge where we are getting prepped for the shoot she says, "C'mon, quit whispering about girls. Time to get you dressed."

She moves off to a nearby rack full of clothes and quickly returns with a neatly folded stack for all of us. After we are all changed we sit down in chairs and Lou Teasdale does our hair and we even get makeup put on our faces.

Aria waltzes in as Lou sprays some dry shampoo in my hair.

**Aria's POV:**

I happily walk in to see the boys getting their hair and make-up done.

"How manly! I love that shade on Louis!" I joke poking his cheek. He tries to bite my finger and I pull back with ninja-like reflexes. "Ninjaaa!" I whisper. _Hah. If only they knew how much truth there was to that..._

"Isn't it nice? It really brings out his eyes," the lady fixing Harry's hair says with a wink and I laugh. "I'm their hair stylist and make-up artist. You can call me Lou."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Aria," I say politely. I notice Paul shift by the door out of the corner of my eye.

"So are you in the video?" she asks me without looking up from Zayn's hair.

"Oh, uhm, no actually..."

"Oh really? Not to be rude or anything but why are you here, hun?" My eyes widen and I have a small panic attack. _What the hell am I supposed to tell them?_

"Oh yeah! Sorry we never asked you before, love," Liam apologizes.

Then I suddenly get an idea. I put my hurt face on, "You mean Paul didn't tell you?" I feel guilty for throwing him under the bus but I needed a sturdy cover.

The boys shake their heads and Lou tsks at them when one of Harry's curls falls out of place. Paul's head jerks towards our direction at the mention of his name.

"I'm Paul's niece; his brother is my Dad," I explain loud enough for Paul to hear me.

"No way! Paul, you never told us you had a brother!" the boys accuse him.

Paul starts to open his mouth but I answer for him, "Um, well you see... My Dad and him aren't really... On speaking terms." An answer that any decent person wouldn't question further. Paul nods his head- approving my cover. I give the boys a tight smile.

All of their hair and make-up is done so they get up and Liam pats my back and gives me a reassuring smile. My heart pangs with guilt. I honestly don't know if I can do this for long...

"I'm sorry," Zayn says squeezing my hand.

"But on the bright side, at least you're here now!" Louis pipes up and I smile at his optimism.

A man in a dark polo pokes his head through the doorway and calls to boys, "C'mon to the set now we start filming in 5."

They all file out and I follow them. Paul closes the door and comes out behind me. I turn quickly and mouth 'thank you' before jogging to catch up with the guys. He nods and smiles.

The boys stand on some stairs and goof off in front of an open-top bus before finally they get serious enough to start. The video takes all day and the guys are absolutely crazy. At some point they are on those weird bouncy ball things racing down the hill and I almost get run over by Harry in a small kiddies' car being pushed by Louis and Zayn. They end up biking and almost killing a few fans including a small white dog in the park. We end up all piling into the red bus and driving around London. They sing to their fans and sign autographs and take pictures.

I am admiring how sweet they are to their fans when a small girl comes up to me and taps my leg.

"Who are you?" she asks in an adorable innocent voice.

I smile and tell her, "My name is Aria. I'm Paul's niece. What's your name?"

"You're pretty," she states matter-of-factly. "My name is Sarah and I'm 5!" she says holding up her fingers.

"Aww thanks! You are quite beautiful too, hun. Would you like to meet the boys?" She squeals and nods her head furiously. By the time her mother drags her away she has all five boys' autographs and a kiss on her cheek from Harry. I smile at the thought of the boys being able to make so many girls so happy.

We eventually have to get on the road again but we all wave from the top of the bus at the crowds of fans. Harry comes to stand next to me at the railing.

"Are you having fun, love?" he asks sincerely.

"Of course! This has been amazing; you guys are so sweet to all of your fans!" I gush without thinking.

"Good," he smiles. "They are brilliant, it's why we do this, you know?"

I laugh softly, "Well I know now." Then I look over at him and find that he's staring at me. "Wha-"

I get cut off by his lips pressing against mine. I jerk away and look at him with wide eyes. He looks at the floor and tries to grab my hand but I quickly turn away and walk over to where the rest of the boys are standing. _I can't believe he just did that._

**Harry's POV:**

She laughs softly- her laugh is so beautiful. Then she says quietly, "Well I know now." I can't help but notice her flawless skin and gorgeous pink lips. "Wha-" she begins to say but I lean forward and put my mouth on hers without thinking.

Girls almost always fall for me in a matter of minutes and I don't think anyone has ever not kissed me back. Except for Aria isn't. She pushes me back and looks astonished. My eyes study the floor ashamedly and I try to grab her hand to apologize but she turns and swiftly walks away to join the other guys. I feel her slipping away from me… _What have you done, Styles?_


	6. Chapter 6 Hate & Pancakes

**Hey guys!thanks for reading! Also thank you to The Black Dove Flyeth! every review means a lot! If you haven't read her stories you should because they are flipping amazing. :) Sorry this is a crappy chapter I was having writers block :/ also in the beginning (like chpt 1!)I wrote that she was staying with them for summer tour... Well i forgot abt that small detail lol so let's pretend that I never said that ;) sorry! Hope I didn't confuse you too much! Thanks xx**

As soon as we get back to the hotel I head back to my room. I feel exhausted from everything that has happened today. After the you-know-what (*coughkisscough*), we stopped yet again for more fans. _Being famous is a lot of work… I've gotta give the boys some credit for that._

"Night, love!" they all (well all minus Harry I think) say before disappearing into their own room.

I jog down the hall to my room and quickly step in. I throw off my jacket and scarf and run upstairs to grab my laptop. I run back down and flop down on the couch as Skype launches. _I can't wait to tell Molly everything…_

Seconds later her face pops up on my screen and we both have huge grins on our faces.

"HOW WAS MEETING ONE DIRECTION?" she squeals loudly clapping her hands together.

"Oh my gosh, Mol, it was CRAZY," I tell her about my whole day, from the towel incident to the kiss.

"He did not," Molly gasps. "Wait… Aria, was that your first kiss?"

"Yes…" I whimper as my eyes fill with tears. "Well kind of, but I didn't kiss back I pulled back right away! I mean people were everywhere and I just met him! I wish I could just be a normal teenage girl sometimes. They are making it so fucking hard for me not to fall in love with them. And I can't, I mean what will Principal Hayes do if he finds out?"

Yes, I'm almost 17 and Harry was my first kiss. Don't judge! In seventh grade I "dated" a guy named Tyler and the agency found out. The next day his dad lost his job and they had to move away. Not a coincidence. Having a relationship without them knowing is extremely difficult and risky.

"Aww! Well let's pretend that it never happened. But hah! More like what will their fans do if they find out! Those biotches will either one: beat you with spoons, two: stab you with carrots, or three: both and even more!"

"Jesus, thanks for your reassurance…" I mutter not even understanding what spoons and carrots had to do with anything.

She must see the confusion because she explains, "It's an inside joke… only Directioners would understand."

"Of course," I pout and stick out my tongue at her. We both laugh. "So have you talked to Principal Hayes about you coming out here to visit?"

She looks like she is going to burst with excitement, "Yep."

"Welllllll?" I prompt her getting antsy.

"Welllll I was going to keep it secret and surprise you when I got there but I can't keep it in! I have a flight out to London on January 28th!"

We both cheer and laugh. "I'm so excited!" Molly exclaims.

"Only 11 days!" I say after checking the date; it's January 17th.

"Ok well I gotta go to bed now; I have a Chinese exam tomorrow! God, all those characters are so annoying! Oh, by the way love, I love your accent. Extremely sexy. Good night, love ya, hun!" she says mocking my British accent.

I laugh, "Love you too! Good luck on your exam, g'night!" then I hit end and close my laptop. I throw my head back and lean into the plush leather cushions. _This has been crazy._

I end up just stripping down to my underwear and sliding under the satin sheets on my bed. Maybe I did like Harry. But I can't fall in love. I will not fall for anyone. And even if I do, then no one can know.

The next morning I wake up to the annoying ringing of my hotel phone. I check the time: 8:15am.

"What?" I snap groggily into the phone.

"Wake up, sunshine! We're taking you shopping!" a voice I recognize as Louis' says cheerfully.

"Mhmm..." I groan. "Ok I'll come to your room in 15."

"Okie dokie!" he says. Then I hear some scuffling and yelling. I think I hear Liam, "Harry for Christ's sake put some clothes on!"

I snort as I hang up. _Oh God. Those boys..._

I leap up and realize I only have 14 minutes to shower, choose an outfit, and get ready. I think I set a record for fastest shower and quickly pull jeans, a tribal cropped top, and fringed boots out of my suitcase. I get dressed in a matter of seconds. ( cgi/set?id=53918822)

I braid my hair loosely to the side and do my make-up light and natural. I spritz myself with perfume then grab my purse and the same jacket and scarf I wore yesterday. My stomach growls loudly. _Shit! What about breakfast?_ I groan and decide I'll just grab something at the mall or wherever the heck we are going.

Approximately 27 seconds later (Yes, I counted) I knock on door 514.

Liam greets me with a tight warm hug, "Morning, love."

"G'morning, Liam," I say sleepily.

Then Louis comes up to me and I give him a death glare.

"You nearly gave me a heart attack this morning, Tomlinson! It's not even 9am yet..." I grumble clearly irritated.

"Woah, someone's not a morning person," he jokes stepping back. I shoot him another look and my stomach growls loudly again.

"Gahh I'm fucking starving. Can we go get some breakfast before shopping?" I complain.

Niall bounds down the stairs and nods his head, "Yeah, I agree with Aria. How about IHOP?"

"Niall you already had waffles and a bowl of cereal!" Zayn accuses him with a crooked smile.

I laugh, "One can never have too much food..."

"Agreed!" Niall shouts. The rest of the boys roll their eyes.

"Can't you explode of you eat too much?" Harry jokes coming out of a bedroom.

"Yeah you can actually," I say not making eye contact with him. Then I tell them how my fish, Mr. Bubbles, died because he didn't know when to stop eating.

"Poor Mr. Bubbles!" Louis exclaims.

"I know. He was a great man," I joke and we all chuckle.

"Well let's get going before someone starves to death!" Liam announces. We all pile into the elevator and dance through the lobby before walking to a nearby shopping mall. The boys all have hats and shades on so people won't recognize them.

First we stop at IHOP and sit down. The waitress eyes the boys suspiciously when they don't take off their sunglasses after we are already inside. She looks to be about 20 years old with hair dyed an ugly yellow. She is wearing globs of make-up frankly make her look quite worse. When I flash her a grin and start to order she writes it down but narrows her eyes at me. Niall orders multiple dishes and the other boys just order drinks since they already ate.

"So tell me about yourselves!" I say with a wink regretting that I hadn't paid much attention to the profiles I was supposed to study on the plane.

"Wait, so how much do you even know about us right now?" Liam asks with raised eyebrows.

I feel my face heating up and admit, "Not much, to be honest. I was a fan of your music before I met you but I didn't even know your names or what you looked like."

"Wow! Do you live in isolation under a rock or something?" Louis jokes. _Oh he's so full of himself…_

"Pretty much..." I say winking not wanting to have to make up another lie. My hearts drops into my gut. _Did I just talk with an American accent? FUCK!_ I pray to God that it wasn't too noticeable.

But Harry is giving me a strange look and so is Liam. Niall was too oblivious to notice and Zayn and Louis start to banter back and forth so I assume they didn't notice.

"I have to go to the bathroom," I mutter trying to do my best accent. My eyes widen, _Shit!_ "I mean the loo..."

I quickly get up and practically run to the restrooms in the back of the restaurant. No one is in the stalls so I quickly open my wallet and take out a spare translator. I install it in a matter of seconds and blink until the watering in my eyes stops.

I walk casually back to the table and slide into my seat in between Louis and Niall.

"What took you so long?" Louis demands jokingly as he pokes my cheek. I turn and open my mouth and try to bite his finger but he moves it away surprisingly fast.

"Ninjaaa!" he whispers and we both crack up.

"Ok! You guys still never told me about yourselves!" as me and Niall eat they all tell me their favorite color, food, animal, sports, etc. When Louis tells me that his favorite food is carrots I give him a look, "What is up with you and carrots?"

The rest of the boys crack up while I just sit here looking confused. After I finish eating (somehow Niall finished all of his food before me! How does that happen?) Liam pulls out his wallet.

"Oh no!" I say taking out my own. The agency gave me loads of cash and a checking account which I can take money out of whenever I need. "I've got it. I'm the one who said I was hungry anyways."

"It's our gift to you then, love. Besides, all of Niall's food is equivalent to a meal for each of us. A regular sized meal, anyways…" he says with a smile. _Why do they have to be so nice, too?_

I laugh, "Well thank you!" Niall pouts and takes off his shades to clean them off just as the waitress walks up to take the bill.

Her brightly lipsticked mouth drops open.

"OH MY GOD!" she starts to yell. I jump up and slap my hand over her mouth. Niall quickly puts his glasses back on.

"I swear to God, if you yell or tell anyone that we are here, I will hunt you down and make your life hell," I hiss in her face. She rolls her eyes.

"Whatever. As if you could. You're just a lucky bitch who is only here because you won one of those stupid contests to spend a day with One Direction," she spits and I see Niall tense and start to get up so a put a hand on his arm.

"Well, a lucky bitch is better than being a jealous bitch, hun." I say calmly. I pull Niall up and we all leave. Without leaving a tip.


	7. Chapter 7 Mutual Feelings

**Harry's POV:**

Breakfast was... Weird. I could've sworn she was talking with an American accent at one point and then she ran to the loo except for she called it the bathroom. And then the waitress was about to fangirl and scream (which would've been a fucking disaster) but Aria stopped her.

I could hear Aria threaten her but the waitress was a real bitch. She insulted Aria who just took it in and retorted coolly. Niall started to stand and he looked like he was ready to punch the lady but Liam shot him a look and Aria put her arm out. Then she grabbed Niall and we left as fast as we could.

"If you tell anyone what just happened I swear you'll regret it," I whisper to her before exiting the restaurant. I have to jog to catch up with the group and when I do they are all consoling Aria although she doesn't seem very phased at all.

I desperately wanted to apologize to her but she's been avoiding me ever since I kissed her. I decide that I'll talk to her later- I needed to tell her how I felt.

I nudge Zayn, "Hey mate, how's she doing?"

"Well she's playing it off like it doesn't matter at all but I think she's really hurt inside. This whole famous thing is new to her and all of our fans' comments are going to be a shock, I think."

"Oh yeah… I wonder if she has a Facebook and Twitter. This might be rough."

"Yeah. Hey what's up between you guys? It seems like things are kind of tense between you two…" Zayn trails off eyeing me suspiciously. Last night I hadn't told anyone but Louis.

"Ah… let's just say I was moving too fast for her."

Zayn raises his eyebrows, "Alright, mate. Maybe you should talk to her; you know she's practically living with us from now until the end of tour."

"Yeah, I will."

**Aria's POV:**

That fucking waitress pissed me off. I want something to take my mind off of everything that has happened so far today.

"Hey, love, where do you want to shop first?" Louis asks me with a goofy grin while waving his credit card around. I slap it away.

"Don't wave that thing around! There could be pick-pockets," I say wiggling my eyebrows although it was true. "I'd like to buy a sweatshirt. And some new fancy shoes. And a nice dress."

"Don't worry, I could take out bad guys any day," he winks. "But ok, I think we can do that! Let's get shopping!"

"Oh puh-leez, Lou. Even I could probably take you out!" Not a lie. But then he starts chasing me and tickling my sides every time he catches up. I am defenseless.

"Ahhh!" I scream as I try to slap his hands away. I fall to the floor as he tickles me until I can barely breathe. I say in between fits of giggles, "Please… Lou! Stop! Stop it… Tomlinson!"

Then Liam starts to say, "Guys, people are starting to stare-"

But a deep voice cuts him off, "Excuse me, but you need to stop messing around. This is a shopping mall, not a playground. If I catch you again you must leave immediately."

Louis pulls himself away from me and hides a devilish grin. I glare at him.

Louis says in a sincere voice, "Yes of course, sir. I'm sorry if we disrupted anything. It won't happen again."

As soon as he is out of earshot we both crack up. I hold onto Louis' shoulder for support and my cheeks hurt from grinning.

"You suck! Such a bad influence… I was innocent before I met you!" I tease.

Louis sticks his tongue out at me. "What are you talking about? I am the definition of innocent."

I snort and we both collapse into fits of laughter again. Liam rolls his eyes while Zayn and Harry seem to be having a thoughtful conversation.

My eyes widen, "Where the hell is Niall?"

Everyone stops to look around. "Oh my God we need to find him!" I exclaim.

**Niall's POV:**

As soon as we step into the mall I get a craving for ice cream. I have no idea why, but I just did. As Louis chases Aria past me I slip away to buy an ice cream cone real quick. _I can get back without them noticing…_

As I pay for my double scoop of cookies and cream the cashier bats her eyes at me. _Fuck! She didn't recognize me did she?_

"Hey, I'm Sophie. Can I have your number?"

_Shit…_ "Oh, uhm well I don't actually live here. So I don't have an international text and call plan," I manage to say with my best American accent.

"Oh that's cool. Well do you want to meet up for dinner or a movie or something later on?" she asks nervously. _Was she seriously asking me on a date…? She doesn't even know my name!_

As I try to figure out a way out I feel an arm snake around my waist.

"Hey, babe. Are you ready to go yet? We have a lunch reservation in less than an hour and I need to go back to our room to get ready," Aria says sweetly, saving my ass.

"Oh, I'm so so sorry! I didn't realize you had a girlfr-" Sophie apologizes with flaming cheeks before I cut her off.

"It's fine. Thanks you can keep the change," I say quickly wanting to leave ASAP.

As soon as we exit the ice cream shop Aria let's go of me and swipes my ice cream cone out of my hand. She takes a bite (yeah… she _bit_ my ice cream… who does that?) and hands it back to me. Our hands make brief contact that sends tingles down my back.

"People tell me I could've been an actor if I wanted to," she says with a wink. "You are so lucky I found you in time to save your ass!" she scolds but still smiling.

I laugh, "Well I guess it's the luck of the Irish! But really, thanks."

She rolls her eyes, "No problem. We'd better get back to the other guys so they know we're safe. Niall we thought you got kidnapped or something!" she chuckles. "But no, you were in a fucking ice cream parlor. Nice American accent, by the way," she adds with a smirk.

"Sorry! I had a craving! Like you could do better!" I joke while secretly admiring her gorgeous hair and beautiful complexion.

"I think I probably could." Then she stops and touches my wrists gently while looking deeply into my eyes, "Please don't do that again, Niall. I can't afford to lose you..." she says softly then adds almost as if correcting herself, "_We_ can't afford to lose you."

My stomach gets butterflies. _What the fuck does she mean by that?_ I just nod and she releases her fingers from my arms.

**Aria's POV:**

"Sorry! I had a craving! Like you could do better..." he apologizes with sparkling blue eyes. My heart melts just by looking into them. His hair is absolutely amazing and I find everything about him attractive. I snap out of my admiration and focus instead on what he just said.

"I think I probably could," I say confidently- knowing that there's no way I could lose considering I have an actual American accent. I stop suddenly and take Niall's wrists in my hands.

"Please don't do that again, Niall. I can't afford to lose you..." I nearly whisper. I just want to kiss him right then and there. I loved him. I loved Niall Horan. Then the thought of Harry's warm soft lips pushes its way into my mind. Maybe I liked Harry too. But no one can know. Well, maybe except for Molly. So I cover up as best I can and try to convince myself that I'm not falling for anyone, "_We_ can't afford to lose you."

He gives me a strange look but nods anyways. I remove my hands from his skin and they feel cold without his warmth. _What have I gotten myself into..._

Louis' POV:

Harry and I have searched almost every store by the time Aria finds us.

"Mate! We thought we had lost you for good!" I jokingly scold Niall.

"Yeah, guess where I found him?" Aria says with a hand on her hip.

"Pizza place? Ice cream parlor?" Harry guesses.

She laughs and winks, "Yup getting more than just ice cream!"

"You naughty little boy!" I laugh.

Niall blushes and says defensively, "Oi! I didn't even get her number!"

Aria chuckles, "Thank God I found him just in time, the cashier was asking him on a date! If she had found out who he was I have a feeling this shopping trip would be cut short!"

We are all laughing when Zayn and Liam walk up to us. Harry explains what had happened and they chuckle.

"let's get shopping!" Aria declares. "I need some nice stuff if I'm going to be following you guys around to fancy partays and such!"

We stop in nearly every store and I think I swipe my credit card about 100 times. We stop in Jack Wills and Harry buys a new sweatshirt. Aria does as well; it's white with blue writing. We stop in multiple shoe stores and she chooses a pair of black Tom's.

"Oh, so you're copying the trendy Tommo now, yeah?" I approve her choice.

She laughs, "You wish!"

She also takes a pair of nude strappy heels and Niall grabs yet another pair of Supras and we proceed to check out. By the time we eat lunch at Nando's, each of us is carrying at least two bags. Afterwards we walk to a fancy dress store for Aria.

Aria tries on about 20 dresses and they all look stunning on her. The last three are a sheer light pink and she seems to really love them. One is a chiffon high-low and the other is embroidered with lace flowers. She steps out wearing the third one which has a design on the top and a flowy skirt. ( cgi/set?id=54888812)

"You look gorgeous, love! You should buy them, there are plenty of occasions you can wear them for," I pipe up.

"Are you sure it doesn't look bad with my skin tone? Oh my God this one is nearly 300 Euros!" she exclaims and her face falls. She runs inside her dressing room and checks the other. "500… and 400." she reports back.

"Don't worry about it, babe! We got you!" Niall says with a warm smile.

I can tell that Niall is really into Aria, I just hope it all works out. Harry told me last night about the kiss and I was honestly shocked that he had true feelings for her. I don't want Niall to get his heart broken by Harry making the first move, but also if Niall gets her then Harry might revert back to his old ways. I'm pretty sure no one wants to go back there.

After the whole waitress incident this morning, we all got closer to Aria (well maybe besides Harry). I had so much fun with her during our tickle war and I think it's cool that she isn't fangirling all over us. I feel jealousy crash over me like a wave when I see the way she looks into Niall's eyes. _Damn leprechaun._

Is it so bad that I, Louis Tomlinson, might actually fancy Aria Blackwood?

Things could start getting ugly real soon.


	8. Chapter 8 The Games We Play

**Harry's POV:**

After a long day of shopping we head back to the hotel. We barely fit in the elevator we have so many shopping bags.

"Thank you guys so much for everything today. I had a great time," Aria gushes with a sweet smile that makes everyone else want to smile too. _Well at least that's what it does to me..._

"It was our pleasure, babe. I'm glad we got to know you better," Liam says speaking for all of us. We nod in agreement and I catch Niall staring at her. A feeling of protectiveness takes over me and I want to tell Niall to back off, that Aria is mine. Except she isn't. I unclench my fists and sweep a hand through my famous curls.

"Speaking of getting to know each other better, do you guys wanna hang at my place tonight? We could all watch a movie and order pizza or play games if you want." Aria suggests to all of us but is really only staring at Niall when she says it. A pang of jealousy shoots through my veins.

"That'd be great, love!" Louis says excitedly. "Shall we bring some drinks with us?" he adds with a wink.

Aria laughs as we exit the elevator, "I mean I guess so, but my fridge is completely stocked. It's like they must think I'm a fucking alcoholic or something!" Niall chuckles and she meets his eyes and giggles too. _What? Did I miss something?_

Zayn raises his eyebrows but before he can say anything Aria scoffs, "I'm not an alcoholic by the way. Does it seem like I'm a drunkie?!"

I subtly stick my foot out as she fumbles around in her purse for her room key. She trips and Louis catches her. We all laugh. "Don't answer that." she chuckles.

"I was actually going to point out that you're underage." Zayn mumbles.

"Thanks for the update," Aria says with a wink but then adds seriously, "No one will ever know. As long as we're careful, yeah? You won't tell anyone, right though?"

We all nod and Zayn exclaims, "Of course not! It'd ruin the fun for all of us."

I liked Aria's rebellious rule breaking side. Well actually I liked her all around but you know what I mean. We could finally live a little without our 'supervisor' stopping us. In fact, this time she would be joining us. I heard Paul talking to her this morning. He told her that she was basically to fill in for him when he wasn't around. I don't think Aria looks like a body guard at all, but maybe that's the point...

Aria leads us into her penthouse and uses the cool touch screen control pad to turn all the lights on. She kicks off her shoes and runs upstairs with her bags.

I take the opportunity to talk to her. She is untangling her beautiful hair when I knock on the door frame. She looks up and I start, "Hey, listen I wanted to talk to you abo-"

"Can we just forget about it? Please?" she interrupts with pain evident in her eyes.

"No!" I blurt and her eyes widen. "I mean, no I need to apologize to you. I'm truly sorry I never meant to hurt you or our friendship. Please forgive me, Aria?"

She inhales deeply and then replies evenly, "Ok, Harry. But only cause your bank account paid for my dresses!" She jokes. Well I hope it was a joke.

"If you don't mind me asking, why did it hurt you so much? I mean it's not like you kissed back or anything..." I regret the words as soon as they come out.

She narrows her eyes at me before opening them again and saying, "It was just a shock. I mean I had just met you and all..."

"Oh, erm, right. Of course. Sorry for everything, Aria."

"No, it's fine. I over reacted. Anyways," she says flipping her hair and raising her voice as I follow her out into the loft. "Let's go have some fun!"

**Aria's POV:**

I hear laughs from below me and I bound down the stairs. They all have beers in their hands.

"Well I see you found the drinks just fine!" I wink. After the brief but extremely awkward encounter with Harry I was ready to move on. I hated lying, and even worse is that I didn't even need to lie about the kiss for my job. I lied because I'm a bitch. _Ugh. I hate this._

I search for a nearby pizza place on my iPhone and quickly call to place our order, "Royalty Suites... Yes, I would like 5 pizzas- two cheese, two pepperoni and one Hawaiian... Yep, thank you!

I hang up and say, "45 minutes till the pizzas get here! What film do you guys wanna watch?" I ask proud that I remembered to say 'film' instead of 'movie' unlike earlier. Fortunately, nobody noticed. _Those boys are so oblivious._

"Insidious!" Zayn and Harry yell as I groan.

"I hate horror films!" I whine.

"How?!" Zayn demands with wide eyes.

"Because... they're horrifying." I say. _Wow I'm so boss at arguing..._

Louis snorts and I slap his bicep. _Wow, Lou is actually pretty ripped... _I think and immediately regret it.

He flexes and smirks while I feel my cheeks burn. I roll my eyes and instead focus on turning the TV on and getting the movie started. The boys all plop down and there is only a little spot between Harry and Niall. _Great. This is just great. How will I ever keep my feelings down?_

I make up my mind and grab a pillow to sit on the floor when Louis suddenly pulls Harry practically on top of him and yells, "Hazza! Don't you love me?" We all laugh as Louis messes with Harry's curls. Niall pats the now larger space and I sink into the couch keeping my private space.

About 30 minutes into the movie, there's a knock at the door. I am clutching Niall's arm like it's my lifeline and his arms are wrapped protectively around my waist. Someone pauses the movie and we all look at each other expectantly.

"NOSE GAME!" I yell putting my finger on my nose. Everyone copies me but Liam is last.

"Liammm! You have to go pay for the pizzas!" Louis says childishly and I find myself smiling.

"Fine!" he says dragging out the last syllable and getting up reluctantly. I check my phone:

**Molly Dolly/Mrs. Styles/honey bunny: **Hey hun! How goes it? I bombed my chinese exam :/ ms. Yao gave me detention. I wish u were here :( btw stay alert love, don't want u to do drunken things! ;) theyre in ur suitcase in the side zipper pocket

It takes me a moment to understand what she's talking about- I'm pretty sure it's pills from the agency. They keep you alert and prevent you from getting drunk when you drink a lot. _These could come in handy…_

**Me: **its going great! I went shopping w/ the boys tday :D im sorry! U shud've studied instead of skyping me ;) haha ok thanks ;) ;) ill make sure to take it

I look up and see Niall reading my texts. I don't really blame him, I mean it was right under his nose! He blushes and looks away when he notices I caught him.

I giggle, "Its fine, Niall. I really don't mind."

"Oh ok. Who's Molly?"

"My bestest best friend in the universe!" I say dramatically.

"Who?" Louis asks and the rest of the boys are now looking at me.

"Molly! She's coming to visit soon; I hope you guys don't mind!"

"Is she hot?" Zayn blurts and I laugh.

"She's mine!" I joke. "Just kidding, but if anyone hurts her, you will regret it. But yes, she's gorgeous!" I exclaim with a wink.

"Mmm…" he says blushing. I roll my eyes just as Liam comes in with the pizza.

"What are you guys yelling about?" he exclaims while setting down the pizzas on the glass coffee table.

"My best friend, Molly, is coming in town and Zayn called dibs." I explain. Niall leaps up and throws open the box hungrily. I can't help but notice how exposed I feel without his arms around me. _I don't deserve anyone as sweet and innocent as Niall anyways, _I put myself down. I get up and grab a slice, too. Within seconds the first box is demolished. I sit back down only to realize I'm sitting on top of… Harry?

_Why do I always end up on top of him? _

_Wow that sounds wrong…_

I jump up and squeal in surprise.

Harry winks and says huskily, "I don't mind if you'd like to be on top of me, love?"

I shove him over and plop down. "You wish!"

"I do wish," he says quietly in my ear so that nobody else can hear. His warm breath tickles my neck and sends shivers down my spine. I blush furiously and resume the movie. More than once, I jump up and scream. Harry has to grab me and I hold his hand so tightly I think I must've cut off his circulation at some point. _And yes, I am at the top of my class of secret agents. Movies are scarier than real life! Well sometimes anyways… sometimes it's the other way around._

It is 9:07pm when the movie ends and adrenaline still rushes through my body from the movie. I was curled up against Harry almost the entire time and I noticed Niall staring a couple of times. _Weird. He couldn't possibly like me!_

Then Louis gets up and soon returns with 6 beers in hand. "Who wants to play a game?!"

"I have to use the loo," I mutter before running up to my room. I check the side pocket of my suitcase and sure enough, there is a small translucent orange bottle with some white pills inside. I go to the bathroom and take one pill with a gulp of water.

As I reach the bottom of the stairs I can see the boys sitting in a circle. I sit down next to Louis and Niall. "What are we playing?" I ask noticing that everyone but Liam seemed tipsy already.

"NEVER HAVE I EVER!" Louis shouts and Harry collapses into a fit of giggles. _Oh God… _

"Ok, me first!" Niall says excitedly. "Never have I ever… mooned my teachers!"

Louis gives him a death glare and takes a big swig of his beer. He's the only one who takes a drink (thank God!).

My jaw drops, "LOUIS TOMLINSON! What the hell were you thinking?!"

"I dunno! It was funny!" Louis shrugs and the rest of the boys laugh. "Ok, never have I ever… used a gun."

My heart jumps. I take a sip from my bottle. _It's not that suspicious…_ I see Niall, Liam and Zayn take a drink as well.

Liam raises his eyebrows at me, "You've used a gun before?"

"Hell yeah!" I say excitedly trying to play it off. "My uncle _is_ a security guard you know!"

"Well, true… Just doesn't seem like you would be interested in that stuff."

"It's ok. I mean it's fun if you can actually hit a target!"

I can hit a dime from 75 feet away.

They laugh and I relish in relief. "Ok, never have I ever… gone on tour for a band!" I laugh knowing they all would have to drink now. Liam scowls at me before taking a small sip.

Multiple rounds later Harry says, "Never have I ever been dumped."

Everyone but me and him take a sip. Typical Harry Styles. "Oh so you do the dumping then, Ms. Blackwood?" he teases.

"It's not like you don't!" I exclaim. "And I just never date so I couldn't be dumped…" I add softly avoiding eye contact with everyone. Niall instinctively puts his arm around me and I lean into him.

"Smart girl," he whispers into my ear.

I give him a halfhearted smile before Louis breaks the tension, "Let's play the question game! We all just take turns asking questions and everyone has to answer." I know he's doing this so that I can get to know the boys better. I mouth 'thanks' at him and he grins. "So, celebrity crushes?"

"Demi Lovato!"

"Kim Kardashian."

"Natalie Portman…"

"Megan Fox!"

"Leona Lewis!"

"Hmmm…" I think out loud. _Choices, choices._ "I'm gonna havta say… Zac Efron! Although Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson… yum." I say with a wink.

We go through favorite foods (Niall spent about 10 minutes on that one), favorite songs, worst nightmare, worst fears, and most embarrassing moments. I learn that Liam had an incredibly hard childhood. He was also born premature and only has one working kidney.

"I'm so sorry, Liam! If I had known we would've never started playing drinking games! How early were you born?" I apologize sincerely. My heart twinges in sympathy for him. _He's so tough to have made it through, and look where he is now!_

"It's ok, babe. You didn't know. And 3 weeks," he says with a tight smile. "Birthdays and if you were born early or late, by how much?"

Everyone goes through their answers and I take a deep breath, "February 3rd. 31 days early."

They manage to gasp even though they are all drunk by now. Well, besides Liam. I took away his drink.

"That's so early! Even earlier than Liam!" Niall slurs.

I roll my eyes, "Glad to see you can at least figure that out."

"Was everything ok? I mean with your health and everything?"

"Yeah, actually. I mean I was just small but other than that like a normal baby!"

"Ok, switch up!" Louis shouts. I 'shush' him and he just shushes me back. _Sassy boy._

"Time for some good old truth or dare!" he says jumping up and down. "Zayn, truth or dare?"

"Dare!"

"I dare you to knock on the door across from us. If someone answers you have to ask them if they have any carrots that you could use."

Everyone laughs as Zayn pulls himself up and exits my room. Louis is hogging the peephole but Harry knocks him out of the way. I sigh and just wait to hear from Harry what happens.

**Zayn's POV:**

I laugh drunkenly. _I can't believe I'm doing this. Oh well._

I knock on the door until a huge buff man swings the door open annoyed. "What?!" he barks.

"Do you have any carrots that I could use?"

"Get back to your room, drunken bastard! Or else I'll call the cops!"

I snort and just walk away. Harry swings the door open for me and as soon as they close it behind me we collapse in giggles. Aria is rolling her eyes and Liam is trying to calm Niall down who is in a fit of laughter.

"Ok, Aria! Truth or dare?!"

"Dare, of course!"


	9. Chapter 9 Change of Heart

**Aria's POV:**

"Dare, of course!" I say. _I'm not a chicken... Most of the time anyways._

Zayn smirks and says, "Well then, I dare you to kiss Harry."

_Oh shit._

"Ok..." I say dragging out each syllable. I smirk, "Harry's been waiting for this all night."

_I can't believe this is happening. My first/second kiss is with Harry again. And he's drunk. And we're playing truth or dare. FML._

I crawl over to Harry and decide to have some fun. _Seize the moment,_ I think with a smirk. _He won't remember a thing tomorrow morning._

I lean over him and put my left hand on his thigh. His breath hitches and I can see his eyes widen.

"Excited, Mr. Styles?" I purr in his ear and watch as goose bumps form on his neck and arms. I press my forehead against his and stare into his mesmerizing eyes. I bite my lip and play with his curls.

Then I kiss the corner of his mouth and he mutters, "Tease..."

I smile for a second before his lips crash into mine. I let his tongue enter my mouth. _Ew. He tastes like alcohol._

Both of his hands are in my hair tugging at the brown waves created by the braid I was wearing earlier. I kiss him back harder and our tongues fight for dominance. I love Harry Styles.

_Wait what? I swear that pill is wearing off..._ I pull back and pinch Harry's cheek before going back to my spot. I check the clock; it's 1:25am. _Nope, it's supposed to remain in effect for 5 hours. Which means it was my own brain making me... Oh God. Stupid feelings._

Louis winks at me and Zayn whistles. I roll my eyes. "What are we doing tomorrow?"

"I think that we get to watch the music video for the first time and the rest of the day is free." Liam replies. I think he's the only one capable of replying at this point.

"Cool! Well you all should probably get to bed so your hangovers won't be as bad tomorrow!"

"I love you, Aria," Harry slurs and reaches out towards me.

I slap his hand away and smirk, "I know."

Nobody gets up to move. I sigh, "Guys seriously!"

Liam shrugs. "Can we just stay over here t'night?"

"Fine," I say exasperatedly. I quickly text Paul to tell him where the boys are. I fix the pull out sofa bed and throw some extra pillows and blankets on it. I put another blankets on the regular couch next to it. "There's another sofa bed up in the loft so I'll let you guys figure out the sleeping arrangements."

I stomp my feet tiredly up the stairs. I look back down to see Zayn buried under the sheets on the sofa bed and Liam settling down next to him. Niall is already passed out on the couch and I smile. I see Louis and Harry come up behind me and wink, "Don't do anything dirty, boys."

"No promises, love," Louis says exhaustedly as I pull out the sofa bed. He flops down and is out like a light. I roll my eyes.

"G'night Harry."

"Love you, too."

"Go to bed, you drunk." I say chuckling softly. _I sure hope he doesn't remember anything._

I take a very fast shower before just putting on some underwear and slipping under the covers. Within minutes I'm dead to the world.

I wake up from a soft noise to my right.It's 8am but no light comes in because the opaque curtains block the sun. I hear rustling beside me again. In the fucking bed. My whole body tenses up and I freeze. I slowly turn my head and can see a dark outline of a body. I can see it rise and fall with each breath… _Oh mah fucking Gawd._


	10. Chapter 10 Making Headlines

**Aria's POV:**

My brain is still waking up so it takes me a few seconds before coming up with a logical solution. Well, somewhat logical. In one quick movement I'm on top of the body pinning their shoulders down and my forearm against their neck. A low yelp comes from underneath me. _It's a man._

Then I here commotion outside and my door is flung open. The lights flash on and the first thing I notice is that all I'm wearing is lingerie. _Way to go, Aria. _The second thing is that the person beneath me has brown curls and green eyes.

"WHAT THE FUCK, HARRY?!" I scream in astonishment.

"What the hell is going on here?" Louis demands from my doorway.

"I don't even know! Ask your best friend who was SLEEPING IN MY FUCKING BED!" I say hotly while rolling off of Harry and pulling on sweatpants and a pink camisole.

"Nice outfit you had on there," Zayn says with a smirk. I give him the finger and return my attention to Harry.

"I- wha- Sorry! Sorry I don't even know…" Harry mumbles groggily. He gets out of the bed. Wearing nothing. N-O-T-H-I-N-G.

"Ahh! God, Harry! You were in my bed naked?! And you don't know how that happened?" I yell shielding my eyes. He dorkily covers himself up and gives me a sheepish grin.

"I must've just come in here last night when I was still drunk. I'm sorry! I don't remember. I won't do it again… Without your permission." He says the last part with a wink.

"As if you'll _ever_ have permission. Fine, I forgive you. But only cause you didn't know what you were doing," I say giving into his puppy eyes. _I honestly didn't mind that Harry was in my bed… naked. But still it was a shock._

"Ok, everybody out! I'll make some breakfast while you guys get dressed." I order while heading downstairs. I find some waffle batter mix and a waffle maker. I plug it in and get started.

**Niall's POV:**

I surprisingly remember a lot from last night, but I wish I didn't. When Aria kissed Harry I almost left the room. Harry always stole the girls away, I was sick of it. But if that's what Aria wants, then I don't want to break them apart.

This morning was a shock when we ran into her room to see her on top of Harry in only her bra and panties. Not that I minded that… Aria bounds down to the kitchen and Harry looks at us with a grin on his face.

"Nice sight, yeah?" he chuckles. "Well I certainly wasn't expecting that this morning!"

"She obviously wasn't either! Control yourself, Harry!" Liam says only half joking.

"I'll say! Mates, I thought she was going to kill me! I couldn't even move; she had me pinned down! And not to mention I could hardly breathe with her arm on my neck like that!"

"Oh please, I bet you enjoyed that Harry!" I say ignoring the jealousy in the bottom of my stomach.

"I never said that I didn't!" he says with a wink.

**Harry's POV:**

"I never said that I didn't!" I exclaim with a wink. The lads roll their eyes and turn to exit the room. But still, something about Aria was bugging me. _Maybe it's the way she never really went into detail about her life, or her reflexes. I mean, what girl pins you down like a criminal and nearly chokes you?! _I sigh and shake my head. But she had me intrigued. And I wanted her; I longed for her touch. I barely remember the kiss last night, but I remember it being good.

We file out of Aria's room and go downstairs.

"Hey, we're going back to our room to change but we'll be back in less than 20!" Niall tells Aria as we leave.

"Ok, that's fine!" she says before returning to mixing some batter in a bowl.

"Don't miss me too much, love," I whisper in her ear before leaving a quick soft peck on her cheek. She blushes.

"You have nothing to worry about, Styles," she says despite the red creeping onto her cheeks.

I laugh and follow Zayn out the door. As soon as we get back to the room we all shower (our room has 3 bathrooms so we all finish pretty quickly) and get changed into our clothes for the day. The rest of the lads are waiting in the living room as I walk in pulling a white t-shirt on.

"What the hell is this?" Paul demands while glaring at me. He slaps a magazine down on the coffee table and I spin it around to see Aria and I kissing on the front cover. My eyes widen.

"How did they get this?"

"I don't know. But I do know that you were being extremely careless and irresponsible!"

"We were playing truth or dare! See," I say looking back down at the photo but feel my stomach drop when I notice they somehow cropped the other boys out.

"No, I don't see. And neither do all of your fans and everyone else reading this magazine!"

"I'm sorry, ok! I didn't think this would happen, obviously, or I wouldn't have done it. I'll do a Twitcam or something later to explain it." I plead to Paul.

"Fine, but check with Aria first. Be back over here by 10:30am because we are watching what they have so far of your music video."

"Ok, thanks. See ya, mate!" I say before quickly escaping back to Aria's room with the other boys.

**Aria's POV:**

I pour the last remnants of batter into the waffle maker just as I hear a knock on the door. I swiftly wash my hands and open the door to let the boys in.

"MMM! It smells ravishing, love," Niall says winking and I laugh.

"Hope it tastes just as good as it smells! My cooking skills aren't the best," I admit crinkling my nose.

"I'm sure it will," Harry says in my ear from behind me. I turn and roll my eyes so he can see. I divide the waffles up evenly and hand everyone a plate. I put out the syrup, chocolate chips and even whipped cream. I swear that this kitchen has more food in it than Molly's and my dorm- and that's saying something!

"Hey, do you guys remember if the curtains were open all last night? Or did one of you open them just this morning?"

Silence. _This can't be good…_

"Ahh… yeah. They were open last night," Louis says looking at Harry.

I raise my eyebrows, "Meaning…?"

"The paparazzi got a shot of the dare," Harry says quietly looking at the floor.

"Our dare?!" I say already knowing but dreading the answer. My fork clatters against my plate.

"Yep," he replies popping the 'p'. He pulls out a magazine and I see none other than myself and Harry Styles sucking face on the front cover.

"Shit," is all I manage to get out.

**ONE DIRECTION'S HARRY STYLES IS CAUGHT LOCKING LIPS WITH A MYSTERY GIRL- **_**page 22**_ is the headline in bold red letters. I flip to page 22 and skim the article.

_Harry Styles was seen in a hotel room last night snogging a girl with long dark hair. Who is she? Sources say that a girl named Aria Blackwood was seen shopping with them, and the day before on set of One Direction's new music video! Is this Aria girl locking lips with Harry Styles or is it someone else? Whoever it is, Directioners all over the world are going crazy on Twitter, Facebook and other social networking sites… _Blah blah blah.

"Aw fuck," I mutter under my breath. Suddenly my waffles don't seem so appetizing anymore.

"It'll be fine! I was planning on doing a Twitcam later to explain everything to our fans if that's alright with you?" Harry says placing his hand on my arm.

I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose, "It's not them that I'm worried about," I murmur mostly to myself.

"What?"

I look up, "Nothing, nothing. It's gonna work out. Yep. It will…" I try to convince myself. _It's going to be hell if the agency takes this in the wrong way. Sure, it was truth or dare. But they know that I wasn't drunk. No excuses for me._


	11. Chapter 11 London Bridge

Harry rubs my arm and the other boys try to reassure me that it will be ok. _What if I lose my job? What if the guys find out? What if what if what if..._

I give a weak smile and scarf down the rest of my waffles.

"Thanks for breakfast, babe!" Liam says while putting all of the dishes in the sink.

"Yeah, might've been the best meal I've had in a week!" Niall exclaims and I smile.

"Thanks, guys," I say appreciating their kindness. "So are you excited to see your video? Louis was really showing off his dance skills..."

Louis chuckles, "Yeah... They were so good that they'll probably all be cut!"

We all laugh. I still have a smile on my face when my phone starts buzzing in my pocket.

**Incoming call: **Unknown number

I answer with the swipe of my thumb.

"Hello?"

"Agent Blackwood, this is Principal Hayes. Do you have a minute?" his deep voice booms through the line. My smile falls and I rub my temple.

"Yeah, hang on." I say. I tell the boys to go back to their room and once they do I raise the phone back up to my ear. "Ok, they're gone."

"It's about the kiss. It's all over the news and celebrity gossip columns! It even made the cover of multiple magazines! You need to be more careful, I understand that you were playing a game but now lots of attention is going to be on you!"

"Wait, how'd you know we were playing truth or dare?"

"Aria, do you really think we'd leave you unmonitored? If anything bad happens and we need to step in, then we'll know. But anyways, consider this your warning. And you only get one. Mess up again, and I'm afraid that Molly's flight might be canceled."

"Yes sir. Thank you, I'll be more responsible I promise."

"Ok, Agent Blackwood. I trust you. Stay safe."

"Bye," I say and hang up. I lean against the wall and slide down until I'm on the floor. _Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale._ I do breathing exercises before standing up and going to my room.

I change into some white ripped skinny jeans and pull on a long sleeved red shirt. I put on a heart necklace made of pearls and some pearl earrings. Then I slip on my new black Toms and go to the bathroom. ( comfy/set?id=54808733). I curl my hair in loose curls and quickly do some light make-up. I finish rubbing some chapstick on my lips before grabbing my purse and Jack Wills sweatshirt and heading over to the boys' room.

When I arrive they are all crowded on the couch around the large flat-screen TV. I plop myself down on top of Louis and he tries to lick my arm.

"EW! Louis how dare you!" I pretend to be offended.

He just laughs, "You ready to see some amazingness?"

"Sure, sure. Let's see it." I say smiling.

The video starts to play ( watch?v=Y1xs_xPb46M) and about 3 seconds in I burst out laughing. I grab the remote.

"Wait, wait, I gotta see this again," I rewind it back to the beginning. "Watch Louis!"

When it gets to 0:03 everyone is watching for Louis and he makes a hilarious face and is like rubbing his thighs. We all crack up and even Louis is laughing at himself.

"And I bet they'll leave that in!" he exclaims with a grin.

"They should! It's funny!"

We watch the rest of the video and notice that for some reason Harry is waving around an umbrella at 0:46-47.

"It was a beautiful umbrella…" he jokes and we chuckle.

"Only you, Harry. Only you," I say. We laugh when it shows footage of some crazy fans running behind the bus. "Wow, they are truly obsessed…"

"No, they are dedicated. There is a difference, young grasshopper," Louis tells me with a serious face.

"Oh of course, Professor Tomlinson. Hey, what do you guys wanna do now?"

"We could give you a tour of London if you'd like?" Liam suggests.

"Wait, where did you say you were from?" Zayn asks.

"Uh, Birmingham." I say satisfied that I remembered my cover. "But this is my first time in London, so I'd love a tour."

"Let's do it!" Niall says happily. "First let's go to Nando's though. I'm hungry!"

"Niall! We just ate! You had like 5 waffles," I exclaim.

"That was 2 hours ago! It's 11:45 anyways which is close enough to lunch," he whines.

"Ok, we'll head to Nando's then maybe we can rent some of those scooter things that the tourists use and just ride around the city," Liam says and I nod my head in excitement.

"I've always wanted to ride one of those things! That sounds great!"

We take a taxi to Nando's which was very good actually and then rented some scooters. There were only 5 left.

"Aria can ride with me!" Harry shouts with glee.

"Uhh… I don't know if I trust you on a scooter, Styles," I joke.

He winks at me and I climb in behind him.

"Follow me!" Liam says as he pulls out of the parking lot. I slide my helmet on and try my best not to hold on to Harry as we start to move forward.

"It's ok, love. I know you want to put your arms around me and hold on for dear life," Harry shouts over the wind.

I roll my eyes and hug him tightly. By the time the boys ahead of us stop on the London Bridge, my chin is resting on his shoulder. I admit it; I don't want to move. And Harry smells good. Great, actually. I sigh and swing my leg over the scooter to dismount. I pull my helmet off and the cold wind whips my hair around my face immediately.

**Harry's POV:**

The feeling of her arms wrapped tightly around my body was so cozy and just felt… right. Her chin was resting on my shoulder by the time we reached the bridge and joined the other lads. She sighs and gets off the scooter and cold seeps into my back where her body used to be. When Aria pulls her helmet off, her hair flies everywhere. She digs around in her bag for a moment and then brings out a white winter hat and pulls it down over her head.

I dismount the scooter and pull my helmet off as well. I walk over to her and take in Aria's pink cheeks and nose.

"Are you cold, love?" I ask as she shivers slightly.

"Just a little. I should've dressed warmer," she says through chattering teeth.

"Well at least you look brilliant," I say with a smile. I pull her into my arms and she resists a little at first but then gives in and buries her face in my chest. I rub circles in her back until she stops shivering. She pulls back and looks into my eyes.

"Thanks, Harry," Aria says with a small smile. Her eyes sparkle, "I can't believe this all…"

"What?" I ask with furrowed eyebrows.

"I mean, here I am in London, standing on the London Bridge with none other than One Direction. It's crazy!" she exclaims before brushing some of my hair out of my eyes.

I freeze at her touch but then my skin tingles where her fingers brush my forehead. Aria's eyes widen as if just realizing what she was doing. She starts to drop her hand but I grab it. I take her other hand in my mine and look into her eyes.

"Aria, I'm in love with you. Ever since I met you I've had feelings for you. If you don't feel the same way about me, please please tell me because I don't want to be in your way," I blurt and her mouth is open a little. I continue softer, "I love you, Aria and all I want is to be with you and know that you love me back…"

Her face is only inches away from mine now, "I love you, too Harry Edward Styles. I love you."

My lips hover over hers and she closes her eyes but then whispers sadly, "But I just don't deserve someone as good as you. You don't deserve someone as bad as me."

Her eyes are a watery and stormy grey. She pulls her hands out of my grasp and slowly walks over to join the rest of the boys. _What the hell just happened?_


	12. Chapter 12 Good Fortune

**Aria's POV:**

He was going to kiss me. And I knew. I wanted it so bad but instead I just whisper, "But I just don't deserve someone as good as you. You don't deserve someone as bad as me."

I don't think I can do this if he doesn't know the truth. And I can't tell him. So I guess I just have to keep my feelings out of it and he'll get over me soon enough. He has to.

I almost cry as I pull away from him and reluctantly make my way over to the other boys. We stand at the edge of the bridge and I admire the landscape.

"London is so beautiful…" I murmur mostly to myself.

"It is isn't it?" Niall says from next to me. Then he notices my glossy eyes and I quickly look away and try to blink back the tears. "Aria! Are you ok? What happened? Did Harry hurt you?"

"N-no. It's fine, I'll be fine. I… I just couldn't. Harry doesn't deserve someone as awful as me. But he doesn't see that and now I think I just broke his heart…" I stutter while choking back sobs. I see pain in Niall's eyes. _Why is he hurting too?_

Niall pulls me into a tight hug and whispers in my ear, "You aren't a horrible person, Aria. If anything, Harry doesn't deserve someone as wonderful as you. If you both love each other then I don't see what the problem is!"

I smile a little and realize I'm feeling better. _But Niall doesn't know the truth either… Maybe I should tell them? No, no I can't._

"Thanks, Nialler," I say pecking him on the cheek. _I can date Harry, and it can be real. I'll tell the agency that it's fake and I'm only doing it to get closer to them so I'm in a better position to protect them. This can work. It will work._

The rest of the day flies by until we reach the London Eye. It's 8pm now and the sun is just above the horizon.

"C'mon! Let's get on now so we can watch the sunset!" I shout in excitement while running up to the booth. We pay and wait in line to board a "pod/capsule".

Just as we reach the peak of the wheel, the sun starts to set. I watch in amazement as the sky fades into orange then red then pink.

"Breathtaking, isn't it?" Harry whispers on my neck and I jump a little.

"Yeah, it's so beautiful. Hey Harry about earlier-"

"Aria, if anything I don't deserve someone as amazing as you. I love you, and there's no changing that. Please believe me when I say you are gorgeous and absolutely brilliant."

**Harry's POV:**

She looks up and smiles at me, "You are so amazing, Harry…"

I take her face in my hands and lean down. My lips press into hers and our tongues meet in a flurry of sweetness. Her hands tangle in my curls and our kiss deepens with passion and desire. I can feel her smile against my mouth and I can't help but let the corners of my mouth turn upwards too. My hands slide down to hold her at her waist and I notice there seems to be something hard in her waistband. Before I can figure out what it is, we are interrupted by whoops and catcalls. Reluctantly I pull back and Aria rolls her eyes at the lads.

She curtsies and smirks at them.

"Finally she gave in to those curls!" Louis says in mock astonishment.

"They are rather irresistible…" Aria trails off and winks at me. I smile widely at this girl. _I love her. I want her to be mine, not just for a one night stand or a fling, but forever._

After more kissing and whispering our pod finally reaches the bottom of the Eye and we get off. The whole ride back to the scooter rental shop Aria screams in mock terror and Louis swerves around crazily. People give us all weird looks and I'm pretty sure I saw a few paps out of the corner of my eye. Well, right now, I'm pretty sure none of us gives a fuck. I don't regret anything.

When we arrive back at Royal Suites we chill in Aria's room. I plop down on the couch and watch Zayn and Niall play Call of Duty.

"What do you guys want for dinner?" Aria yells from the kitchen.

"YOU!" I yell back with a cheeky grin. She doesn't say anything back and I frown slightly. _Was that too much? … Nah._

"I'm sorry, that's not on the menu tonight," she suddenly whispers in my ear and I jump up and yelp.

She laughs and winks at me before dialing a number, "Ok, I'm ordering Chinese take-out. You guys are such a great help," she says sarcastically.

"Hi, yes I would like 3 boxes of sesame chicken, 4 rice things-" she gets cut off and frowns. "No, I said _three_ sesame chicken-"

She sighs exasperatedly then before I know it she is blabbering in a foreign language! _What?!_

After she hangs up, she realizes that even Zayn and Niall stopped their video game to stare at her. Louis' mouth is open and Liam looks at her with raised eyebrows.

"How do you know fluent Mandarin?" Liam demands in astonishment.

"I learned it, smart one," she deadpans while rolling her eyes.

**Aria's POV:**

"I learned it, smart one," I deadpan and roll my eyes. _Shit! What was I thinking?_

I actually started learning Mandarin Chinese in eighth grade at SSI Academy (School for Skilled and Intelligent aka secret agents) and certified as fluent by the end of first semester in 9th grade. But of course they can't know that.

"Well that's impressive!" Louis blurts and blushes a little. I giggle.

"Don't underestimate me, Tommo!" I say sternly with a wink.

"I need to go get some fuel for my car; I'll be back in a few!" Harry says while jingling his keys. _Wahh! I can't protect Harry if he's not with the others!_

"Harrehh!" I protest. "Can't it wait till tomorrow so we are all together? You might be attacked and it's dark now!"

He rolls his eyes, "Fine, I'll get Paul to come with me."

"Promise?" I ask firmly.

"I promise!" he pecks my cheek before heading out.

Harry returns after about 20 minutes safe and sound (thank God!). By the time dinner arrives I'm practically starving- it's 8:15pm and I haven't had anything since lunch! Niall ate "linner" which apparently is lunch/dinner (like the brunch idea) but he's hungry again of course. I can't help but smile at his adorableness when he jumps up in delight as I unpack the food. We finish everything. Then I deal out the fortune cookies. There's only five so I don't have one until Harry pulls one out of his pocket and places it in front of me.

"This one is especially for you. I hope you like it," he says softly.

I rip the wrapper and crack the cookie to read the message. _Ohmygosh._


	13. Chapter 13 Same Mistakes

**Aria's POV:**

I reread the words about 3 times until it sinks in: _Will you be my girlfriend? I love you._

I look up at Harry in pleasant surprise and smile widely. He raises his eyebrows in anticipation.

"Of course I will be your girlfriend, Harry Styles!" I yell and get up to run over to him. He embraces me tightly and I whisper, "I love you."

He replies with a kiss and the rest of the boys cheer.

**Harry's POV:**

As soon as I slipped out of Aria's room earlier, I got Paul and explained my plan to him. We drove to the Chinese restaurant and thank God there was someone there who understood English. I persuaded them to type a personal message for me and put it into a fortune cookie. I had to pay them a little extra of course but I think it was definitely worth Aria's reaction.

Her eyes lit up when the words finally sunk in and she grinned at me. My heart pounded and I raised my eyebrows in anticipation.

"Of course I'll be your girlfriend, Harry Styles!" she shouted happily and I exhaled in relief. My heart lifted and I embraced her in a hug. "I love you," she whispered.

I savored the moment and kissed her deeply to let her know that the feeling was mutual. Then the boys all cheered loudly and I grinned.

Now she is slipping her small soft hand into mine and laughing happily. _God her laugh is beautiful._

We decide to watch 21 Jump Street and eat popcorn and M&M's. Aria snuggles up against me and rests her head on my chest. _I wouldn't mind if this moment in time lasts forever._

**Niall's POV:**

He did it. Harry asked her to be his girlfriend. I guess now they're official. When she said yes, I thought my heart might shatter into pieces. But instead I just cheered and smiled like the rest of the lads. I just want Aria to be happy, even if she's not with me. Although I wish she was; I really do.

When she laughs during the movie I smile despite my jealousy. The sound is beautiful, and I know this is such a cliché, but it's like music to my ears.

During the last 30 minutes of the film, the clock shows 11:11pm.

"IT'S 11:11! Make a wish!" Aria shouts childishly with a cute smile. We all laugh but I make a wish anyways.

_I wish that Aria will fall in love with me._ I regret it as soon as I think it.

_Selfish, selfish, selfish. You don't deserve her._

**Aria's POV:**

"IT'S 11:11! Make a wish!" I say happily smiling. I close my eyes.

_I wish that everything will work out between both of my lives._

**Louis' POV:**

I laugh at Aria's immaturity. 11:11 wishes... I sigh. _Oh, what the hell. YOLO!_

_I wish that Aria doesn't get hurt by Harry or anyone else._

I can't deny that I fancy her, but for now I'll have to put my feelings aside. She's Harry's girl now. But if he causes her any pain whatsoever, he can expect to be hearing from me.

**Liam's POV:**

I smile and think of a wish_. I wish that I'll meet the perfect girl this year._

**Zayn's POV:**

_Hmmm... I wish that Molly is as gorgeous as Aria says and that she and I hit off real well._ I smile to myself.

**Harry's POV:**

_I wish that Aria will be mine forever._ I smile even though I know that my wish is completely unrealistic. But maybe it won't just be another failed relationship. _What if she's the one? Whoa! Baby steps, Styles. Slow down._

**Aria's POV:**

I drift in and out of sleep near the end of the movie. My mind wanders back to when Harry and I kissed on the London Eye. Suddenly a small detail pops out at me. _Oh my God. He noticed._

*Flashback*

Harry cups my face in his big warm hands and leans down. I close my eyes as his lips press into mine and our tongues meet in a flurry of sweetness. My hands tangle in Harry's soft curls and our kiss deepens with passion and desire. I smile against his mouth and I can feel the corners of his mouth turn upwards too.

Then his hands slide down to hold my waist and they brush over the gun in my waistband.

*End of flashback*

_He couldn't have noticed... He would've for sure said something. Well maybe he did notice, but he certainly didn't know what it was. Surely a gun isn't what he'd expect their body guard's innocent niece to have in her jeans. Nope, definitely not._

I don't even notice that the movie has ended until Harry kisses the top of my head and says that they're leaving for the night.

"G'night, love you," I murmur sleepily.

"I love you, too," he says before kissing me one last time.

After all of the boys leave my room, I grab my laptop and Skype Molly.

"ARIA! I MISS YOU!" she screams the second the call connects.

"MOLLY! I missed you too!" I say laughing.

"Ok, give me the deets on you and Harry. EVERYONE was looking at the magazine!"

"Oh my God… for real?"

"Uhmm YES! News travels fast, you should know. Ok, fill me in, now."

"Alright, well it was just truth or dare! But… I had feelings for him…" Molly bounces up and down.

"So we went on the London Eye and when the sun was setting he kissed me and I knew then that I really loved him, Molly. Then during dinner we had Chinese food and he gave me a fortune cookie and it said 'Will you be my girlfriend? I love you.' on it! So of course I said yes!" I squeal happily.

"D'awww! I'm so happy for you guys! But what about the agency? If they find out…" Molly says not needing to finish her sentence.

"I'm going to tell them that it's fake so that I can keep a better eye on him at all times. You won't tell, aight?"

"Absolutely not! I think I'm as happy as you are about this!" she laughs.

"Oh and by the way, Zayn called dibs on you," I wink and smile.

"Wait, what? Zayn like as in Zayn Malik?"

"Yes, silly that Zayn. When I told them all that you were coming he seemed very interested."

"OhmyGod. This is unreal," she gasps and zones out.

"HELLO! Earth to Molly! I've gotta go now, it's getting late here. See you in 9 days!" I say tiredly.

"OH YEAH! Ok night night my love. Have fun tomorrow!" I end the call and fall asleep right there on the couch.

My eyelids are too heavy to lift up but I could've sworn I felt something cold fill my left hand. I'm not thinking straight when I see a shadow pass over my head through my eyelids. My natural instincts kick in and I lash out with my right hand. I grab a wrist and flip them onto the couch and pin them down.

My eyes fly open and I'm straddling Louis Tomlinson. _Well shit. That's no bad agent…_

"AH! Wha- What the hell?! What's going on?" I yelp and leap off of Lou as fast as I can. Liam is holding a laptop and his mouth is open. Louis now has whipped cream smeared over his shoulder and is holding a feather… _Oh. Wow._

"Aren't you guys original," I say sarcastically.

"What the hell was that?" Louis demands with a bewildered look on his face.

"I could ask you the same thing! How the fuck did you get in my room?!"

"We asked the desk for a key…" Niall says shyly.

"It was that easy?" I raise my eyebrows. _Anyone could get into my room! Or the boys' room…_

Niall nods quickly. I shake my head and try to wake up some more.

"Why are you holding that laptop?" I demand as Harry waltzes in with a smile.

"Good morning, Ar- What happened to Louis?!" Harry says with wide eyes.

"His prank kind of backfired." I say with a slight smile.

"Well, we are actually doing a Twitcam right now… so that you and Harry could make your announcement," Liam says cautiously while shifting uncomfortably in his place.

"Oh," is all I manage to say. _They just caught me being ninja on tape… and a million fans now hate me for ruining Louis' shirt._


	14. Chapter 14 Taking the Blows

**Heyyy guys sorry for the slow updating :/ I've been busy/lazy :( hope this makes up for it! also if this ever gets deleted (which im getting more worried about btw) you can find it on the one direction fan fiction site (.net)** ** or .com but the one on .net is my priorityy! Same title, same pename. Love you guys for reading and especially my lovely reviewers3 xx**

**Louis' POV:**

After Niall goes down to the lobby and gets a key to Aria's room, we all rush back to ours. I grab some whipped cream out of the fridge and Zayn has a feather we pulled out of one of the pillows.

Liam starts the Twitcam, we are gonna get it all on video! The prank was my brilliant idea. After she's up Harry plans on announcing their relationship to our fans.

"Hey guys, its One Direction here and we are pranking Paul's niece, Aria. Shhh..." he whispers while smiling. I stick my tongue out at the camera.

We tiptoe to Aria's room and Niall inserts the key. The door clicks open and we all sneak in.

"I've gotta use the loo. You guys go ahead and do the prank," Harry whispers to me before walking to the loo. I nod then beckon the rest of the boys to follow me. I see Aria sleeping on the couch still in her clothes from yesterday.

_She's so peaceful and beautiful in her sleep. No! She's Harry's now._

Zayn hands me the feather and I open the whipped cream. I spray some into her hand and move my hand over her face to tickle her nose with the feather when- BAM. It's like Ninja Aria and she flips me onto the couch and straddles me while pinning down my shoulders.

"AH! Wha- What the hell?! What's going on?" she yelps and leaps off of my lap. Then she eyes the feather in my hand and the whipped cream that is splattered on my blue and white striped shirt.

"Aren't you guys original," she says sarcastically.

"What the hell was that?" I demand. _Something is up with Aria. She's hiding something. I can feel it._

"I could ask you the same thing! How the fuck did you get in my room?!" she asks frustrated.

"We asked the desk for a key…" Niall says shyly.

"It was that easy?" Aria raises her eyebrows.

Niall nods quickly. She shakes her head in disbelief.

"Why are you holding that laptop?" she demands while staring down Liam as Harry waltzes in with a smile.

"Good morning, Ar- What happened to Louis?!" Harry says with wide eyes.

"His prank kind of backfired," Aria says with a slight smile.

"Well, we are actually doing a Twitcam right now… so that you and Harry could make your announcement," Liam says to Aria cautiously while shifting uncomfortably in his place.

"Oh," she says weakly. "Sorry 'bout your shirt, Lou."

"It's alright, I have a similar one back in our room I'm going to go get changed," I say with a false smile. _What is she not telling us and why?_

**Harry's POV:**

Louis leaves to change his shirt. I need to find out what exactly happened. I'll ask Lou later.

"Ok, well like Liam said, Aria and I have some important news to tell all of you," I start and she nods. "We are officially a couple!"

She grins and I lean into her. She kisses my cheek softly and I smile widely.

"And just for the record, that kiss plastered all over the magazines and Internet was actually during a game of truth or dare," Aria adds.

"And I wasn't really completely sober..." I say and she giggles. I read one of the comments.

**i-love-1D:** Prove it! ;)

I point it out to Aria and she rolls her eyes and blushes.

"This is for i-love-1D!" I cheer before planting a kiss on Aria's lips. When I pull back she is smiling and all the lads clap.

"Alright guys. Well I gotta go get ready for the day and then get something to eat," Aria says before running upstairs.

**Aria's POV:**

I run upstairs and quickly get dressed ( cgi/set?id=55017763) and curl my hair loosely. I quickly apply some blush, eyeliner, mascara and a peachy shade of lip gloss before throwing my bag over my shoulder and rushing downstairs. Paul is now in the living room and he grabs my arm.

"Hey, the boys are going to rehearsal right now and I'm going with them so why don't you take the morning off?" he says softly so only I can hear.

"Oh yeah, sure. Thanks Paul! See ya guys later, I'm headed to Starbucks," I say before walking out of the room.

I walk down the street just hoping to find a Starbucks. _I didn't really think this one through…_

After walking literally a mile and asking multiple people for directions, I find one and order a hot chocolate and banana chip muffin. I start the long walk back not really paying attention to the street signs. I stop at a couple of cute shops and buy a few magazines to read later. As I finish my muffin I realize I'm completely lost. _Shit… _I pull out my phone only to realize its dead because I didn't plug it in last night.

"OH MY GOD IT'S ARIA!" I hear a shrill voice behind me followed by a chorus of girly voices. I whip around and almost choke out my drink. A mob of like legit 30 girls is swarming and now jogging to catch up with me. _Well fuck._

"YOU BITCH!"

"YOU STOLE HARRY!"

"YOU'RE SO UGLY. YOU DON'T DESERVE TO BE HARRY'S GIRLFRIEND!"

"YOU'RE SUCH A WHORE!"

"I think you're pretty! Don't listen to them!"

My heart starts pounding as I realize the intensity of the situation. I'm lost. They aren't. They hate me, and they want to kill me. And they probably will beat me with spoons or whatever Molly said would happen. I start to run which doesn't go over too well considering my choice of shoes. _Damn heels._

The girls are screaming louder and more hurtful insults as they get closer. I have to stop for the cars flying over the crosswalk. I basically have two options: run across and get hit by a car (death.) or wait for a green walking symbol and get mobbed by some crazy fangirls (death.). I choose the road. _It will be less painful._

I step off the curb just as someone yanks back my arm. My hot chocolate spills all over them and they scream as the steaming liquid burns them.

"Mhmm. Karma's a bitch, ladies," I say louder than intended.

Another girl lurches out at me and I block her but someone to my right _scratches_ me. Like a fucking cat! She _scratched _me! I can feel a trickle of blood run down my right cheek where she ripped my skin with her crazy sharp nails. I knock her off of her feet and push back another teenager. The light turns green out of the corner of my eye and I start to sprint. It was the wrong green light. A car horn blares at me and I just run faster.

"SORRY!" I yell to basically everyone in a car that has to stop to let me cross. Thankfully none of the girls try to follow me across the road but they'll probably flank me and then trap me in some dark alley. Or something like that, anyways. _I'm so lost. Why the fuck is there no taxis?!_

I dive behind some bushes and catch my breath. _I need a phone._ I see a red telephone booth only 30 yards away and make a mad dash for it. I rummage through my purse and hastily stuff the coins into the slot. Thank the lord I memorized at least one of the boys' numbers on the plane ride. I don't know which one it is, but it doesn't even matter anymore.

"Hallo?" a familiar Irish accent comes through.

"Oh my God Niall I'm being chased by fans and my phone is dead and I'm really lost can somebody please come save me? It's literally a life or death situation and right now I'm bleeding because some girl fucking scratched me so please come-" I say without a single breath before Niall interrupts.

"What?"

"OH MY LORD. Niall please just come get me AS SOON AS POSSIBLE please please please! I'm on New Oxford Street in the red telephone booth," I pause and look around, "By a newspaper stand. So just please pull up somewhere near the telephone."

"Erm, ok. Alri, I'm on my way. This better be important because I'm going to get in trouble for leaving early." _Did he not hear anything I said the first time?!_

"Thank you so so much. I'm going to keep talking to you so that you know I'm alive," I say only half joking.

"Ok, explain everything again to me?" I go over everything that has happened to me since I left- much slower than the first time.

Then the line cuts off and I assume my call is up. And I don't have any more change. Before I can get out of the booth I notice the stampede of girls. They've found me. I don't even have anywhere to go and I'm not thinking straight. _If this is a test from the agency then I'm definitely failing._

Before I find an escape route, the surround the telephone booth and I can't even get out. The worst part is that it's not soundproof.

"You dirty slut!"

"You're just dating Harry for his fame and money!"

"YOU'RE THE WORST MISTAKE HARRY HAS EVER MADE!"

"You just want popularity! STOP USING OUR BOYS!"

"BULLSHIT. YOU LOOK NOTHING LIKE PAUL YOU LIAR!" a voice screams and catches my attention. _They can't know, can they? _I find the girl who said it and she looks familiar…

"YA HAVTA COME OUT SOMETIME, BITCH! No one is gonna save your dirty ass!" a tall girl with jet black hair screams in my face, well on the other side of the glass but still.

My heart pangs with pain and sorrow every time an insult is thrown my way. It hurts. Then it starts getting crazy. Pedestrians are starting to look and stop. Some just take pictures with their cell phones while others try to pull the girls away from the telephone booth. Nothing helps. The fangirls are getting really impatient and one approaches with a brick in her hand. I think she took it from the landscaping around the garden next to the sidewalk. She has a wicked grin and shakes her head at me.

"Hope this hurts, you slutty whore. You deserve it," she says loudly and throws the brick at the telephone booth.


	15. Chapter 15 Mistunderstanding

**Aria's POV:**

"Hope this hurts, you slutty whore. You deserve it," she says loudly and throws the brick at the telephone booth.

My reflexes kick in and I jump to the side. The brick doesn't hit me but shards of glass shower over me and pierce my arms, face and even go through my jeans. I look up in time to see a yellow cab pull up on the curb about 50 yards away; behind the mob.

_Please don't let them see Niall, for the love of God. Ok. I'm going to have to run through this pack of wild girls and all the way to the cab. Ok, I'm doing this._

The particularly malicious girls are laughing and kicking more glass toward me. I take a deep breath before going into the throng of people shoulder first. They are shocked and don't react as I start to push through. A couple of absolutely wonderful people help me through and make me a path but I take several blows to my body as they come back to their senses. Just as I break through to the end I see Niall's blonde head bob above the car. Then someone pulls me back and slaps me.

Without thinking I slam my fist up into their jaw and their neck snaps back. A bad ass looking chick steps toward me and throws a punch. I dodge her fist and do one of those ninja kicks where you spin around in the air and my foot connects with her ugly face and she falls to the ground.

A few others make attempts to tackle me but I sprint like my life depends on it (probably does actually) and shove Niall back into the cab and slide into the seat next to him.

The adrenaline fades away and now all I feel is pain. I can take punches and cuts but the insults ring around in my head and the tears start to stream down my face.

"Aria please talk to me, are you ok? I'm so sorry I tried to get ere as soon as I could-" Niall babbles before I just bury my head in his shoulder and sobs rack my body. He rubs my back comfortingly and rests his chin on top of my head.

"They're right. I don't deserve Harry. I don't deserve to be with you guys," I whisper without looking up. More tears slip out and roll down my cheeks. I feel horrible. _I'm a bitch. I'm such a bitch. A lying fake bitch._

Niall cups my face in his warm hands and tilts up my chin so I have to look him in the eye.

"Don't you dare believe any of those girls. They're just jealous, that's all. They know that those things aren't true, it's just jealousy," he murmurs and kisses my forehead. "I'm so sorry they did this to you, I've never seen the fans get so out of control before. Do you want to go to the hospital?"

I shake my head no. "They were going to kill me, Niall. I think I deserved it. You don't understand; I'm a liar and a fake bitch."

"Shhh," he hushes me as I break down again. "Why do you think that? It's not true, Aria. You are beautiful inside and out and those jealous whores are blind if they don't see it."

"That girl really did scratch you..." he adds tracing a finger over the stinging cuts on my cheek."It looks like she had fucking claws or something!"

I make the 'reow!' noise and we both laugh but I stop when my smile opens the cuts and it starts to bleed again. I wipe the blood away and Niall stares at me deep in thought.

"That ninja kick thing was pretty fucking brilliant," he states. I laugh despite the claw marks and sigh.

"I am a ninja, Niall," I say. _Not completely false…_

He rolls his eyes, "Where did you learn to fight like that?"

"School," I get an eyebrow raise in reply. "Honest!"

"I think we should get you cleaned up and tended to. And get some rest," he says obviously not believing me. I sigh and agree reluctantly.

"Did you tell the other guys?"

"Nope, didn't get the chance," he shakes his head and squeezes my shoulders reassuringly. "The lads will all be supportive, I'm sure. We just want the best for you."

I nod in understanding as the cab pulls up outside of our hotel. "Hey Niall?"

"Yeah?"

Before I get out I look into Niall's dazzling blue eyes, "Thanks. For everything."

"Yeah, anytime. Well I mean I hope there isn't another time like that... But ya know. I'm here for you, Aria. You can tell me anything."

I smile appreciatively and give him a tight hug before stepping out of the car. Paparazzi swarm us almost immediately and Niall tosses his hoodie at me. I mouth thanks and then throw it on and pull the hood down to cover most of my face. He places a hand on back and guides me into the lobby while clearing the paps out of our way.

"Where's Harry?"

"What happened?"

"Where were you?"

"You're Aria Blackwood, right?"

We are bombarded with questions but ignore them all as we push through the doors into the lobby. We jog over to the elevator and step in. I pull the hoodie off and give it back to Niall.

"Thanks. That could've been bad."

"No problem. Hey are you sure you don't want to swing by the hospital? You're not looking so great," he asks in a concerned tone.

"Gee thanks, Nialler," I say sarcastically before smiling and shaking my head. "Maybe later," I add to get him off my back.

"Whatever you say..." Niall agrees before Louis bursts out of their room into the hall.

"Finally you're back!" Louis exclaims. I try to look down and get my hair to cover my face but it's too late. "Aria! Bloody hell; what happened to you? Where did you guys go?"

**Harry's POV:**

I follow shortly behind Lou after he announces that Niall and Aria are back. _I love the lad, but I don't exactly trust him alone with Aria. Where did they even go? I think he still has feelings for her..._

Then I hear Louis shout, "Aria! Bloody hell; what happened to you? Where did you guys go?"

Aria looks down but not before I see blood on her cheek. Niall looks especially stressed and runs a hand through his hair.

"Mates, hold on," Niall says softly when the rest of the lads join us. "Let's go to her room."

Louis still has her room key and quickly leads the way into her room. I rush over to Aria and grab her hand.

"Baby, look at me, are you ok?" I murmur while pushing some hair behind her ear. Her cheeks are tearstained and her eyes are red. She chokes on a sob and just leans into me. I embrace her tightly, "No one can hurt you now babe, I got you. Everything will be ok."

I slowly walk Aria to the couch and sit her down gently. Liam rushes off and Zayn quickly closes the curtains. Niall walks off towards the kitchen. _That asshole is going to go eat now of all times?!_ I contain my anger as best as I can and just stroke Aria's head as she cries into my shoulder.

"It's gonna be alright, baby. Shhh... You're safe now," I whisper and kiss the top of her head.

Liam returns with some first aid supplies and tosses me a warm damp cloth. I gently wipe away Aria's remaining tears with my thumbs and she looks into my eyes. I smile weakly at her and the corners of her mouth tug upwards slightly. I dab gently at the scrapes on her cheek with the cloth.

"Jesus Christ, Aria! What did you get attacked by a battalion of pussy cats?" Louis jokes.

She snorts and mumbles, "Pretty much."

"I think the girl who attacked her could technically pass as a pussy," Niall says as he plops down on the other side of Aria. He hands her a steaming mug and she wraps her hand around it. _Suck up. At least he isn't stuffing his face like I thought._

"Thanks, hun," she says softly and lifts the cup to her lips. Her hands tremble slightly and my heart aches for her. _Whatever happened must've been some bad shit._

I shoot Niall a quizzical look and continue to clean the blood and tears from Aria's face.

"A crazy 'fan' clawed Aria's face and she obviously wasn't holding back anything," Niall explains putting air quotes on the word 'fan'.

"And you watched this happen?" I demand angrily. _Why was he even there?!_

"Of course not, mate!" Niall says offended and gives me a hurt look.

"Harry, my phone died so I had to use one of those red telephone booths and the only number I could think of happened to be Niall's. I didn't even know who I was calling until he answered! And thank God he got there as soon as he did otherwise I would probably be lying dead on the streets of London right now," she says in Niall's defense.

"Ok ok..." I say somewhat doubtfully.

"I got there in time to see a pack of girls surrounding the telephone booth and some bitch lobbing a fucking brick through the glass at Aria," Niall spits out as pain flashes across his face. Aria has her eyes closed and is leaning back into the couch cushions. She bites her lip and another tear slips down her smooth cheeks.

My mouth is open in shock and fear. _Why the fuck would our fans do this? _How_ the fuck could they do this? Aria got away this time, but I'm pretty sure if it happens again there won't be the same ending. We have to keep her safe. _I_ have to keep her safe._

"I'm so sorry, love! If we had any idea of how dangerous it was for you to go out, we definitely wouldn't have let you go," Louis apologizes and gives her hand a squeeze.

"Are you ok? I can take you to the hospital," Zayn offers but she shakes her head.

"I already asked her; she said no both times." Niall sighs in defeat.

"Look here, babe," Liam says before applying some Neosporin or something to the claw marks on Aria's cheek. She winces and holds her breath until he's done. "I think you should go to the hospital tomorrow. We can all go with you."

"Actually no, we _are _going with you," Louis corrects. "That's never happening again, love."

"Sure, sure. Whatever, I'll go. Thanks, Liam. All of you- thanks. I'm gonna go shower sooo, yeah," Aria says shakily before taking her now empty mug to the kitchen and heading up to her bathroom.

Zayn turns the TV on and Liam and Louis join him. Niall is biting his nails and I can tell he's not really paying attention to the X-Factor auditions. I get up and Niall glances over at me. I use my head to gesture towards the kitchen and he slowly gets up to follow me. I'm seething with anger now; he's trying to take Aria away from me! And he didn't even tell us where he was going when he left rehearsal early today!

I spin around to face him and he looks at me confusedly. He messes with his hair nervously and I just lose it.


	16. Chapter 16 Feeling Down

**Harry's POV:**

"I can't believe you! Why the fuck didn't you tell us where you were going?! Couldn't you at least have sent a fucking text or something?" I whisper-yell furiously.

"I- I didn't know what was happening until I was already on my way! And she was talking to me almost the whole ride there so I couldn't text anyone. You've gotta believe me, mate! I wasn't trying to keep anything from you, it just happened so fast!" Niall explains exasperated with me.

"You are trying to take her away from me, God damn it, Niall!" I blurt out accidentally in my rage.

His mouth drops open, "Harry, mate I don't know what has gotten into you. That's bullshit! Seriously? We all just want Aria to be safe, ok? We'd probably be at the hospital with her hooked up to some damn machines on life support if I didn't go. I don't think you understand that this is about her safety, not about 'who gets the girl'!"

"You're such a kiss-ass. Stop with the speeches about her fucking safety and face the truth Niall," I hiss. "Aria is dating _me_. Aria loves _me_. Get over it and stay away from her, got it?"

"What about you, Harry? Do you love her?" Niall huffs before storming out of the kitchen. My mouth is still open in surprise at his words when Liam walks in.

"You ok, mate?" he says with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah," I mutter before walking back to the living room and settling on the couch. Niall is nowhere to be seen. _Maybe I was too harsh..._

**Niall's POV:**

"What about you, Harry? Do you love her?" I accuse Harry before leaving the kitchen.

I brush past Liam on my way out and hurry up the stairs to the loft. I don't even know where I'm going until I find myself out on the balcony attached to Aria's bedroom. I let out a shaky breath I'd been holding and feel my watery eyes overflow. Tears start to slip down my cheeks and I bite my lip to keep in the loud sobs threatening to come out.

_Harry's right. Aria doesn't love me; she won't ever love me. I'm so ugly. Untalented. Worthless. I don't even deserve to be in the band; people tweet me about it all the time._

** NiallOfficial is so ugly and has the worst voice #justsayin**

** onedirection would be so much better if NiallOfficial just left already #justleave**

**Start trending it #1Dminusniall NiallOfficial onedirection**

**Harry Lou Liam zayn = true one direction. NiallOfficial is useless. #youruineverything**

_I should just stay away from Aria like Harry said. It'd be the best for all of us. I hate myself. Why can't I be more attractive? Why can't I be good with girls like the rest of the lads? Why can't I... Because I'm no good. I can't do anything._

I hear the sliding door open and try to wipe away the tears as best as I can. I see a swish of dark hair and a blur of navy blue yoga pants appear beside me. I look out at the horizon not trusting my voice yet.

"Niall you are amazing," Aria's soft voice reaches my ears.

**Aria's POV:**

"Niall you are amazing," I say quietly after walking up next to him on the balcony.

I had showered and changed into dark yoga pants and an aqua camisole. By now my red eyes and tearstained cheeks are gone but a dull ache still resounds in my heart. I could tell Niall was upset by the way he ran his hands through his hair. I quickly pull on my Jack Wills hoodie as the cold winter air hits me.

"Don't lie to me, Aria," he croaks sadly not looking at me still.

"I am a liar, Niall. But that's the damn truth and if you don't see it you're blind," I say studying his side profile. _God, he's flawless. Ahh no. No. You are dating Harry now. Keep your feelings down, Aria._

Niall finally tilts his head towards me so I can look into his eyes. They are red from crying and his lip is bleeding.

"Harry talked to me," is all he says as I study his face for emotions. Hurt, sorrow, anger. _Shit. What did that boy say?_

"Oh? What'd he have to say?"

"He was mostly mad 'cause I didn't tell him where or why I was leaving rehearsals. Can't blame him for that."

"Ok... What else?" I prompt.

"Nothing else," Niall says too quickly. I narrow my eyes in confusion.

"Niall you can tell me, I won't be mad," I say wiping away a tear rolling down his cheek before adding, "At you, anyways."

"He basically told me to fuck off and stay away from you," he says so quietly that I convince myself that's not what he actually said.

"What?" I ask dumbly.

"He told me to fuck off and stay away from you," Niall says louder and my heart pangs with guilt. _They're a band! They can't be fighting over me! I'm supposed to keep them together! I'm supposed to keep them safe._

"Wha- why the fuck would he- oh nevermind. Over protective much?" I mutter the last part. "You gonna be ok?"

"Yeah, thanks."

"Hey, watch out for the paps. They probably have cameras attached to some fucking trained pigeons at this point."

He chuckles sadly, "Ok, I'll watch out for pigeons."

I smile before returning inside and heading downstairs. _Harry is in for it now._

He's laying on the couch watching the X-Factor with Liam, Zayn and Louis. I stare him down with raised eyebrows and hands on my hip until he looks up.

"Come here, babe," he says motioning towards him. I walk over and sit on his lap.

"How're ya feeling?" he murmurs and his hot breath tickles my neck.

"Like shit."

Louis snorts and Liam nudges him sharply. Zayn shakes his head, "Well yeah you do! Those bitches… did you fight back?"

"Yeah. You can ask Niall; Imma ninja," I say rolling my eyes. Harry cringes when I mention Niall. I get up abruptly and look him in the eye. "What the fuck did you say to him, Harry?!" I burst out.

Louis and Zayn share confused glances and Harry avoids making eye contact with me. "Yeah, I know stuff ok, Harry. Don't even think for minute that you're going to get away with saying it was 'nothing'."

"I didn't mean it all…" he trails off rubbing the back of his neck. "I was just really worried about you and I know Niall had a thing for you so when we realized you were out together…"

"Harry! That's ridiculous!"

"I know, I know. I'm so sorry babe I just got a little protective," Harry pleads and I cave.

"Why are you apologizing to me? Niall is upstairs on my balcony feeling like a piece of shit," I say pointedly.

"Ok, I'll go talk to him."

Harry gets up and slowly makes his way upstairs. Zayn's eyebrows are raised and Louis' mouth is open a little.

"Is Nialler ok?" Liam inquires cautiously.

"I don't know," I say honestly. "He wasn't feeling so great about himself a few minutes ago."

"He's sensitive, I can't believe Harry got mad at him, poor mate," Zayn says in shock.

"He'll bounce back, I'm sure," Louis chirps optimistically. "Are you feeling better though?"

"Yeah, I guess. Still kinda shaken up about the whole thing," I admit as Louis pulls me into a reassuring hug.

"It's alright, babe. Don't take it personally; people do crazy things out of jealousy," Lou says.

"Are you talking about your fans or Harry?" I mutter.

"Both, I suppose. They'll work it out; this isn't your fault, Aria."

"It sure feels like it. All I've done since I got here is cause drama and trouble," I vent feeling depressed.

"That's not true! We have so much fun with you around! You're way funner than Paul!" Zayn pipes up and I roll my eyes at the word 'funner'.

"Well I'd sure hope I'm more exciting than that old grandpa!" I joke. The boys laugh and Louis tries to tickle me. I burst out in laughter until he accidentally hits a bruise on my left ribcage and I gasp in pain.

He retracts his hand, "Oh my God I'm so sorry, Aria! Are you ok?"

I roll my eyes, "Phshaw! I'm not a baby."

"You're totally right. Correction: you're a _big _baby."

I stick my tongue out and pull Lou off the couch. I smile at the thought of considering him my brother.

"What?" Liam interrupts my happy family day dream.

"I was just thinking how you guys are all like the brothers I never had…" I say absentmindedly. An image of my older brother, Michael, is conjured up in the back of my head. I haven't seen him in over 2 years; he went off to 'boarding school' after my mom died when I was 14 and he was 16. AKA he was accepted into a spy school in California. I heard him talking about it to a friend who was also going there.

"Do you have a brother?" Zayn asks innocently.

"Yeah… I haven't seen him in a while though. He went off to boarding school after my mum died," I say sticking to the original cover.

"Oh, I'm sorry babes," Liam says softly.

"No big deal! He was always eating all of the food anyways," I say only half-joking. They laugh lightly and I hear Harry and Niall coming back down.

"Oi mates, are we going say something to our 'fans'?" Harry asks as he walks into the living room.


	17. Chapter 17 Rising Suspicion

**Niall's POV:**

I'm just about to head inside when I bump into Harry with my head down. "Sorry," I mutter my thoughts on other things.

"No, I'm sorry, mate. For getting mad at you and telling you to stay away from Aria. I guess I was just jealous and I was afraid that something happened between you two when, you know..." he trails off not wanting to bring up the 'incident'. "And also I want to thank you for taking care of her once you got there. You were right; we'd probably be with her in a hospital right now if you didn't go."

I nod my head. _Harry Styles was jealous?! Of me?!_

"So we're good, yeah?" he looks at me pleading for forgiveness.

"Yeah," we man hug **(A/N lol I didn't want to just say hug cause I feel like that wouldn't be appropriate for the scene...) **even though I still feel a pang of anger towards Harry. _I don't want to cause tension; he apologized, what more can he do?_

"Ya know, Aria really cares about you," he says softly. "She was going to attack me if I waited 10 seconds longer to come up here."

A warm feeling fills my chest. _She cares about me. Aria cares._ I smile and Harry slaps my back as we head downstairs.

"Oi mates, are we going say something to our 'fans'?" Harry asks as he walks into the living room. I follow in behind him as the rest of the lads turn to face us. I plop down onto a chair and pull out my phone.

"I'm gonna put a tweet out there; the true fans will probably have it covered by tomorrow though," I say as I go onto Twitter and behind typing on my iPhone. "Do you have a Twitter account, Aria?"

"Yeahhh... I hardly use it though," she replies. "It's aria_roseb."

I nod and finish my tweet.

** NiallOfficial:** What you guys did te aria_roseb tday was jus wrong. you know who you are. she is a beautiful girl and deserves respect #donthate

My phone vibrates as Liam and Harry tweet as well.

** Real_Liam_Payne:** i really cant believe you guys. aria_roseb is a lovely lady and anyone who disrespected her owes an apology

** Harry_Styles**: it breaks my heart to see all the hate towards aria_roseb. What did she ever do to you? I love you babe3 xx

Aria pulls out her phone and reads what we wrote. She smiles, "Thanks guys, I owe you one."

"Your cheek's bleeding again, love," Harry points out.

***Two Hours Later***

We quickly hop into a limousine with Paul. We were leaving the hospital and Aria had to get stitches on her cheek. After much persuading and Paul joining our side, we finally got her to come.

"See, now it will heal faster," Liam says with a 'told you so' look.

She rolls her eyes but still doesn't admit defeat. After we get back to the hotel, Aria heads back to her own room and says that she is going to Skype Molly.

"Holler if ya need us!" I say as we go into our own penthouse. Paul leaves for the grocery store so it's just us. Zayn starts up Call of Duty and I join the game.

"So what do you guys think of Aria?" Louis asks while fiddling with his suspenders next to me. I groan as I get knifed from behind by Zayn.

"What kind of question is that?" Harry says suspiciously.

"I dunno, I mean sorry mate but I feel like she's hiding something..." Lou trails off and Zayn pauses the game just as I'm about to shoot him.

"Awh, Zayn! No fair!" I protest. He shushes me and I pout but listen to Louis and Harry anyways.

Harry narrows his eyes, "Yeah, I guess so. But we only met her like three days ago so there's a lot we just don't know about her."

"But don't you think it's a tad suspicious how she overreacts when we prank her? Like this morning with the whipped cream..." Louis says.

"And when you fell asleep in her bed!" Zayn pipes up.

"And she said something about, oh gosh, what was it? When she found out she was in the magazine?" Liam furrows his eyebrows.

"That it wasn't the fans she was worried about?" I offer surprised at my own memory.

"Yeah! Exactly! What if she's like," Louis lowers his voice. "A spy."

Harry snorts and rolls his eyes, "Aria, a spy?! Loubear I think you're over thinking this."

I mull this over and recall what she said in the taxi after being mobbed. "On the way back after the... Incident... She told me she was a ninja."

Liam scoffs, "Niall I'm pretty sure it was a joke..."

"Well, maybe! But you guys should've seen her fight! She looked... Professional! And she did this legit ninja spinny kick thing- it'll probably be all over the news tomorrow!"

"Did you ask her where she learned?" Zayn asks bouncing up and down in anticipation.

"She told me it was school... And she kept saying that she was a liar."

Everyone is silent and even Harry seems to ponder this.

"Don't spies speak fluently in like, every language? Remember she spoke Chinese when we ordered take out? And I could've sworn she spoke with an American accent at IHop! And sometimes she uses American vocabulary like 'movie' and 'bathroom'!" Louis points out.

"Lads, what if this is legit? Maybe she's like a secret body guard... I mean, Paul _is_ her uncle..." Louis says sincerely in a hushed voice.

"Well spy, ninja, body guard beside, Aria is a very nice girl and before we jump to conclusions we should just ask her, I think," Liam puts out.

**Harry's POV:**

_She wouldn't lie to me... Would she? Doesn't she trust me? I _am_ her boyfriend. We love each other... Well, I love her at least. But if she is a spy… is she against us? She is one hellova actress then. But even if she isn't against us, I don't think I'll be able to trust her again. What else could she be keeping from us?_

I appreciate Liam's idea and nod in agreement. _I need to get to the bottom of this._

**Aria's POV:**

I end the Skype call with Molly and collapse onto my bed. I told her everything, from all my feelings towards the guys, to being mobbed, to the guilt pooling in my gut from lying to the boys. I want to tell them so bad. I feel so fake and horrible I just don't think I can or want to keep it up. My phone buzzes from my waistband and I pull it out. _Unknown number._

Probably Principal Hayes... I slide my finger across and bring the phone up to my ear.

"Agent Blackwood?"

"Yes, sir?"

"I am very disappointed in you. The scene you made with all of their fans earlier today displayed recklessness, panic, and stupidity. I expect more from you, Blackwood. And don't you dare tell the boys the truth, make a good cover story. If you keep this up, we may have to suspend your classification and school year at the Academy. Don't make foolish decisions, Blackwood. We are watching you. Always."


	18. Chapter 18 The Truth

"I know. I will focus more, I promise," I say with a shaky breath.

"That's all. Stay in touch, Agent," he says curtly before hanging up.

My hand is trembling. _Did he just hear my whole Skype convo with Mol? Holy fuck._

I examine my bedroom and am relieved to find that there are no hidden cameras or audio detectors. I check the rest of the penthouse casually and take mental notes on the 5 tiny video recorders in the living room, kitchen and foyer. I get 3 new texts from the boys before turning my phone off.

**Nialler:** Night babe! Talk 2 u tmw morning xx

**Trendy Tommo:** nightnight dont let the bed bugs bite! Lol ;) x

**Hazzathesexgod:** g'night baby girl :) love you tons xox

I snort at their names which they programmed in themselves (obviously!) and nod off to sleep in my huge king bed. _This wouldn't seem as empty if Harry were sleeping with me... Mrmmhrmm._

**Harry's POV:**

**10am-January 21st**

After getting dressed and running to Starbucks we all head over to Aria's room. Liam inserts the key we plan on keeping and we enter quietly. We don't see her anywhere so I suppose she's still asleep. I bring the caramel latte with me and tiptoe into her room.

Aria's snuggled all up under her comforter and sleeping peacefully. She looks like an angel and it wakes all of my will power to not cuddle with her. I kiss her forehead and she sits right up.

"I smell food."

"Good morning to you, too!" I joke handing her the drink.

"God bless you, Haz," she winks at me and puts her hand on my leg to lean over and peck my cheek. I gasp as she squeezes my thigh quite close to my crown jewels** (A/N lol i used to have a British trainer for my soccer team and that's what he called his nuts one time. Just FYI).** She smirks and licks her lips teasingly.

She removes the pressure and gets up in nothing but lingerie. Without thinking I look her up and down. And she catches me. But instead of slapping me she walks to the loo swaying her hips maybe a bit more than natural. She tosses her hair over her shoulder and I bite my lip in sexual frustration. I hear the shower start running and daringly push my way into the steamy room.

"Harry what the poo are you doing?" Aria says from behind the blurred glass shower door. I snort at her choice of words and start to undress.

"Getting ready."

"Excuse me?" she pokes her head out and her mouth falls open when she sees me standing naked in front of her.

**Aria's POV:**

Soon after I step into the hot water I see the outline of Harry enter my bathroom. _What the hell does he think he's doing?!_

"Harry what the poo are you doing?" I demand remembering that he doesn't appreciate it when people cuss. I hear a snort.

"Getting ready," he replies huskily and I can almost swear I see his clothes drop to the floor.

I poke my head out the door and blurt, "Excuse me?"

Then I don't even have time to shield my eyes. Not that I would... But, yeah. Harry Styles is stark naked with steam swirling around his extremely sexy bod. In my bathroom. Did I mention that he was naked? In my bathroom?

Before I can even stop him he steps into the shower with me and presses his body against mine. We end up taking turns washing each other and making out fiercely. To put it simply: it was hot.

20 minutes later and probably hundreds of gallons of water later (too lazy to do the math), I pull away from Harry's grasp and dry off. I didn't want things to go too fast. Harry stays in the shower for a couple more minutes and I assume it's to 'calm down' if you catch my drift. *Wink*

I get dressed quickly as Harry finishes up and head down to the kitchen with my latte in hand.

"Morning boys!" I say cheerfully before sliding onto a stool at the counter. I take a sip of my drink and they all greet me.

"We bought a few different muffins, we didn't know which your favorite kind is," Niall says pushing a bag towards me. I look inside and pick out a choco chip one.

"Chocolate chip! Always," I smile at Niall as he nods his head in agreement. I bite into it as Harry wraps his arms around my waist and nuzzles into my neck. I turn my head and he kisses me quickly on the lips before releasing me and grabbing a muffin for himself. Niall stiffens beside me and Louis rolls his eyes.

"Eww! PDA!" he whines childishly. I stick my tongue out at him and slap Harry's ass just to annoy him more. Harry's eyes widen and I smirk.

"Oops!" I say as sweetly as I can. Liam scoffs and Zayn snickers at Harry's reaction.

After I finish my muffin I look up to see Niall tracing his finger on the counter, Harry looking at the floor nervously, Zayn shifting in his stool, Liam pressing his lips together so tightly that they are white, and even Louis not saying anything. _Ugh. What now?_

Louis meets my gaze and bites his lip.

"What?" I ask exasperatedly.

"Are you a sp-" he blurts before I cut him off.

"Spice girl?" I improvise lamely and bite my tongue. "Damn it."

I glance at the video recorder in the corner of the ceiling. I huff in frustration and motion for the boys to follow me. "Let me show you... My... Uh, dress that was also worn by one of the Spice Girls," I blab randomly while dragging them up to my bedroom. I lock the door and draw the curtains closed. Liam turns the lights on and I sit down on my bed. Niall slides in next to me and Harry stands by the bed on my right. Liam and Lou sit at the end of the mattress and look at me expectantly.

"I was actually gonna say... Spy," Louis admits with round eyes. I snort.

"Yep," I say popping the p.

"Wait, yep you're a spy?"

"Yeah," I say like it's the most obvious thing. _They deserve to know. I love them, and they need to know._ "I'm tired of keeping secrets. My agency swore me to secrecy so if they find out I'm basically dead. But so are you, so keep it hush hush." He narrows his eyes at me.

"I don't believe you!" Louis says.

"Wha- you brought it up! How do you not believe it?!" I demand bewildered by his sudden change of mind. Niall's eyes grow bigger and if his eyebrows move any higher they'd be off his head.

"Oh. You want me to prove it, huh?" I understand finally.

Zayn nods his head and Harry's eyebrows are scrunched up in concentration.

"That's ridiculous! You? A spy?" Liam blurts.

"Hurtful!" I frown. "Can you please just imagine that this is real because I swear that it is!"

"How could you?" Harry says softly. He raises his voice, "How could you lie to us this whole time? I asked you out and you didn't tell me, every time I told you that I loved you; you never felt guilty or felt the urge to tell me the truth?!"

"I- I couldn't! It's complicated, Harry. You wouldn't understand! It's not like I'm like legit _spying _on you; I'm more of a secret body guard, yeah?" I stutter taken aback by his abrasiveness.

"HOW CAN I EVEN TRUST YOU ANYMORE? How do I know that you even love me? That you _ever_ loved me?" Harry yells before storming off and throwing a look of hatred at me.

_Ow._ I feel my heart shatter and tears slip out much to my dismay. I quickly wipe them away.

"I think that being a spy would be cool," Niall offers up kindly and I give him a weak smile.

"Some parts are, Niall. Only some parts," I whisper. Because that's the truth. It rips families apart and the secrets ruin most relationships. It's dangerous and your life is always at risk. And now I've lost Harry. Probably for good. What can I say; I did warn him after all.

I tell the remaining boys the whole truth and make it clear that I am not gathering secret information from them or anything. I show them my translator and convince them that I actually have an American accent. The boys are taken aback at first but ease into the idea. They are all very understanding (besides Harry; who hasn't returned) and I feel closer than ever to them.

**-About 6pm—**

We had been looking for Harry all day and there were still no signs of him. _This is all my fault. Completely and utterly my fault._

"Lads, I'm starting to get worried… What if Harry is in danger or something?" I confess my anxiety as we exit yet another pub. We'd checked nearly every building in London and looked through our hotel 3 times at least. We also searched the studio to see if he was blowing off steam by singing and still, no luck.

"Harry's capable of protecting himself," Niall assures me for what feels like the 1ooth time. "I'm sure he'll turn up by tomorrow morning."

"How about we split up? You should go get some dinner or something, I'll keep looking," Louis suggests.

"Aren't you hungry, too?" Liam asks pointedly.

Louis shrugs. "I'll be fine. Count on me being back before midnight; if I'm not, Aria can track me down with her secret agent skills," he smirks and I roll my eyes.

"Ok. Just give us a call if you find anything, yeah?" Liam says.

"Yep! Catch you guys later!"

**8pm-Harry's POV:**

I down another shot to numb the pain. I've lost count of how many shots I've taken. I think the answer is 'enough'. Loud music pounds in my ears and the lights are nearly blinding. My mind starts to get fuzzy and I stop thinking clearly. I need to get over Aria. She didn't love me. She doesn't love me and never will.

A busty blonde slides next to me at the bar and I feel my eyes wander towards her overexposed cleavage. Her amber eyes are like a tiger as she leans in. I shove my tongue down her throat and she climbs onto my lap. I don't want to remember anything.

**Louis' POV:**

I'm about to head back to the hotel and give up when my cab passes by a sketchy looking club. _He wouldn't… would he?_

"Oi, mate! Could you stop the cab?" I ask the taxi driver. I shove some money in his face before clambering out of the car and stumbling into the club. Music blares and the flashy lights make my head hurt. I scope out the place for Harry. No sight of him at the bar. I make my way towards the front of the dance floor and a girl in an extremely short dress starts grinding against me.

I shove her away in disgust and quickly make my way off the dance floor. I notice a hall with doors. _For doing the nasty… Harry couldn't possibly be in there… could he?_

The first door is locked. I push through into the second room and immediately exit after seeing a man with biceps as big as my waist fucking a toothpick lady. _I'm gonna need a bucket…_

I swallow the bile rising in my throat and swing the last door open to see a curly haired boy thrusting himself into a 30 year old (at least!) with fake boobs and blonde hair. Not just any curly haired boy; my curly haired boy.


	19. Chapter 19 Self Blame

**Niall's POV:**

After we split away from Harry we hail a taxi and head back to the hotel. Aria is practically sitting on top of me and I notice her eyes watering. She puts her face in her hands then looks up at the ceiling.

"What have I done. What have I done…" she groans biting her lip.

I wrap my arm around her shoulders and pull her into me.

"It is not your fault, babe. You did the right thing by telling us, he just isn't handling it the best," I murmur and kiss the top of her head.

She shakes her head and just buries her face into my jacket. Zayn pats her back comfortingly and she looks up. Her eyes gleam brightly and her hair is tousled softly.

"They can't find out that I told you guys or that Harry is missing. If they do..." she whispers. "The agency. They won't stand for it."

"Shh... It's alright. They won't find out. You can trust us."

"Yeah well what about Harry with a drunken tongue? Can I trust that? Can _we_ trust that?" Aria stresses and runs a hand through her perfectly straight hair.

"We'll talk to him; don't worry about Harry," Liam says turning around from the passenger seat in the front. "Pizza's good, yeah?"

"Yep! You ordering some for dinner?" I chirp happily at the mention of food.

"Yeah. That ok with you guys?" he asks looking at Aria and Zayn.

Aria nods and Zayn approves as well. When the cab pulls up to the curb paparazzi are swarming the hotel entrance yet again. I wrap an arm around Aria's waist protectively and Liam steps in front of her while Zayn follows behind us.

"Where were you?"

"Where are Harry and Louis?"

"What happened to your cheek, Aria?"

"Are you planning on punishing your fans after they mobbed Aria yesterday?"

"Aria! Are you and Niall together now? Does Harry know?"

I guide Aria towards the hotel and push past the paps. I see her press her lips together in a thin line when they mention Harry's name. I give her shoulder a squeeze and she rests her head on my shoulder as we go up the lift to our rooms. I grab my laptop out of our room and then join Zayn, Liam and Aria in her room.

I scoot onto one of the stools at the island counter and log into Twitter.

** NiallOfficial: **long day tday, fnishin up with a nice pizza :)

My eyes skim over dozens of tweets directing hate at me. One user catches my name.

** 1D_minus_niall: ** NiallOfficial ur so hideous! The trend is gainin popularity #1Dminusniall

** 1D_minus_niall: **more followers by the minute NiallOfficial #imnotalone

** 1D_minus_niall: **im obviously not the only one who agrees that 1D would be better off w/o NiallOfficial

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding and feel tears spring to my eyes. _I need someone. Anybody. Somebody to be there for me. Please._

I jump off the stool and hurry past everyone in the living room to get to the loo. As soon as I close the door I slump against it and put my head on my knees.

**Aria's POV:**

Liam, Zayn and I are watching more of the X-Factor and I still haven't heard from Lou or Harry which is making me really nervous. _I should go find them. I'll give them 'til midnight like Louis said._

I hear footsteps to my right and see Niall walking to the bathroom.

"Hey guys I'm gonna get myself a glass of water; want anything while I'm up?" I announce while stifling a yawn.

"I'm fine, thanks," Liam replies glancing at me quickly and I see that Zayn dozed off.

I roll my eyes and drag myself into the kitchen. I fill up a glass and am walking out when I notice Niall's laptop open on the counter. I know I shouldn't, but I mean, c'mon! I am a spy after all! I walk over and take in the Twitter screen.

"Who the fuck does 1D-minus-Niall think they are!" I blurt out in rage. "Fucking bitch… Oh my God."

_Where's Niall._

I sprint to the bathroom and start pounding the door urgently.

"Niall, I know you're in there. Please, please open up we can talk this out. Please let me in, Nialler!" I plead desperately. Sniffling. "Shit."

Thank God the door isn't locked. I push it open and a body along with it. The first things I see are the razor in his hand and blood on the tiles.


	20. Chapter 19 Part 2

**A/N: Hey guyss! :) just wanted to thank everyone reading this story, following, anyone who favorited it and my lovely reviewers :D also ive gotten a couple of reviews from guests so it wont let me PM them so this is to them: THANK YOU SO MUCH you really made me smile and made my day :D xx**

**Haha love you guys! thanks for everything! MWAH! xx**

**PS this story is on ODFF .net and .com! I am mostly on .net though! ?sid=610&warning=4**

**Aria's POV:**

"Go away," Niall mumbles from his slumped position and I exhale in relief that he's still conscious.

"Niall please let me help you. Let's clean this up," I say softly brushing hair out of his face and taking his bloody wrist in my hand.

There are 3 slashes horizontally and pretty deep. I hear footsteps behind me and recognize Zayn's tired voice.

"Bloody hell! Mate what happened?"

"Jesus Christ! I'll get you cleaned up. Zayn, get me a wet cloth. Aria can you go to the lobby and find some first aid supplies?" Liam takes charge.

I kiss Niall's cheek and squeeze his good hand in reassurance before exiting the bathroom. Zayn walks with me to the kitchen.

"What was all that?" he demands bewilderedly.

"Twitter," I sigh and gesture towards Niall's still open laptop.

Zayn gapes and mumbles, "I had no idea... Poor kid."

"He didn't show it, it's not anyone's fault except Kaye mine since I'm supposed to be watching for that type of stuff," I think out loud. I make a noise of frustration. "God, I'm failing at everything!"

I storm out of the room and leave Zayn staring after me. I jog to the elevator and tap my foot impatiently the whole way down as it stops on nearly every floor. I dart out into the lobby and go to the front desk. An elderly lady looks up warily at me probably because it's nearly midnight.

"Yes, dear?"

"Do have any first aid supplies I could borrow?"

I chew on the inside of my cheek as she goes into a back room and looks for a first aid kit. She comes out with minutes later and I practically snatch it from her.

"You can keep it, sweetie. Is everything ok?" she asks and I whip around. The elevator doors shut and no one is in the lobby. *I could've sworn I heard Louis and Harry...*

I turn to face the lady again.

"Thank you so much. Yes, everything will be fine." I choose to take the stairs since I just missed the elevator and almost faint on the last flight. _God, I needta start working out again._

I quickly make my way down the hall and am passing the boys' room when I notice yelling coming from... Inside?

**Louis' POV:**

After I break up Harry and the woman with fake boobies I drag him out of that club pronto. He's a blubbering idiot the whole drive back and is finally somewhat sobered up when we enter the lobby. _Is that Ar- FUCK! I need to talk to Harry before she finds out!_

"You have nice bicepsss Booobearr!" he slurs. Ok so maybe he wasn't so sobered up...

"Shhh! C'mon let's go to the lift," I whisper while dragging Harry behind me into the lift and hitting the 'close doors' button about 10 times before it finally does.

"I bet you're a good kisser, Lou," he says huskily and I jump in surprise.

"N-no!" I stutter taken aback. I sigh and pull him out into the hall and into our hotel room. Paul must be out, nobody is here.

I grab Harry a glass of water and watch him warily as he gulps it down.

"Why? Harry I thought your days of banging random women at the club were over! Those one night stands are supposed to be in your past! You love Aria!"

Harry narrows his eyes at my outburst, "Well I guess you thought wrong, Lou. Aria is a bitch. She lied to me. She lied to _all_ of us!"

"Harry, she had to! It was for our own safety!" I try to persuade him.

"No! She should've told us in the beginning! That dirty bitch can't be trusted! What if she's gathering information on us or something?!" Harry splutters and a vein protrudes from his pale forehead.

"No! Harry she told us all the truth; maybe if you hadn't lost your damn temper and left you would know!"

"You're supposed to be on my side! I thought we were best mates you bastard! How could you betray me! Did you fancy her? _Do_ you fancy her?!"

"You aren't the only one who cares about Aria, ok?! Or who _cared_." I let slip and before I can react Harry's fist connects with the underside of my jaw and my neck snaps back painfully.

My head spins and I clutch my jaw in pain. I take a step back but he keeps at me and starts pummeling me with his fists. I do my best at trying to defend myself but I can't bring myself to hit him back. _He doesn't know what he's doing. He's drunk. This isn't Harry..._

"Harry, stop! This isn't you!" I gasp and can hear a distant knocking noise… _What?_

"SHE'S MINE! You stay away!"

Then he knees me in my ribs and I double over crying out. I hear someone at the door. Pounding on it I think and yelling something. Harry straightens up and narrows his eyes at the door.

"Who is it?!" I yell hoping that they could save me if only temporarily.

Out of the corner of my eye I see Harry move abruptly and don't have time to dodge the blow. His hand slams into my right eye and I feel dizzy. Blackness starts to blur my vision and I feel myself slump to the ground.

**Aria's POV:**

I freeze and back up. _What the fuck?! Is that Harry and Lou?! Why didn't Louis call me?_

I hear muffled voices and then someone whimpers. I pound my fist on the door to the boys' room. More yelling, and then a yelp.

"GUYS LET ME IN! What the fuck is going on in there? Hellllooo?!" I yell while banging on the door some more. _This cannot be good._

"Who is it?" I hear someone say- Louis I think.

"LET ME IN, IT'S ARIA!" I listen for movement. Nothing. I sprint to my room and hastily open it. Niall is now seated at the counter in the kitchen and the other boys are tending to him. I slide the first aid kit across the counter to Liam and begin to panic.

"Guys give me your hotel room key, like now! I think Louis and Harry are in there but they won't open the door and I heard yelling!" I spit out and the boys study me with wide eyes. "I NEED IT NOW!"

"Ok, ok!" Zayn says while fumbling through his pocket. He holds it out for me and I grab it.

I rush back to the other room and unlock the door to find…


	21. Chapter 20 Damn Sexy Hippo

**heyy :) hope you like this chappie! Lisbeth is based off of one of my best friends on the ODFF sites :) please review! xxx**

**Harry's POV:**

Without even thinking I punch Louis in the face. My best mate. I just punched my best mate. I just got so worked up about him fancying my girlfriend- WAIT. _Holy shit. I cheated on her. But it didn't mean anything! If she finds out that I beat up Lou AND cheated on her, I'm a goner._

I start to sober up and sort through all of my thoughts. I quickly kneel beside Lou and check his pulse. All good. I hurry into the kitchen and am bringing back a cold wet cloth when the door clicks and flies open.

"WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED IN HERE?!" Aria screeches. "Harry we looked for you ALL day and then you come back and-"

_Damn. She notices Louis._

"YOU DID THIS?!"

"I- I can explain-"

"This better be a damn good excuse, Styles!" Aria warns me as Liam jogs up behind her with Zayn and Niall not far behind. Niall's wrist is bandaged up. _What the hell happened when I was gone?!_

"I'm sorry, I was drunk and Louis picked me up-"

"You were at a club," Aria says emotionlessly more as a statement rather than a question.

I nod cautiously and continue, "Yeah and he took me back here but then we got into an argument… about you and I kind of lost it. I wasn't thinking straight! I just got way too overprotective again."

Aria's eyes are closed and she rubs her temples, "We should take him to the hospital. Someone tell Paul please."

"I'm on it," Zayn sighs and heads into another room.

Aria and Liam are bent over Louis and I hand Liam the cloth. He gives me a sympathetic look before looking back down again. I head back to the kitchen and pop open another beer when someone grabs it out of my hands.

"Oi!" I exclaim and turn to see Niall grinning.

"I think you've had enough, mate! This is mine now," he says winking and takes a swig of the beer.

I roll my eyes and study the bandages on his wrist more closely. Niall notices and begins to explain.

"I just couldn't take it anymore, mate. The hate on Twitter…" he says softly looking at the ground ashamedly.

"Niall!" I gasp. "C'mon, we're in a band together aren't we? If anyone doesn't deserve this it's me. Don't let 'em get to ya!" I punch his shoulder lightly and he cracks a smile.

Drowsiness overcomes my body and I collapse onto a bed in the hotel room. _I'll sort things out tomorrow._

**Louis' POV:**

I groggily open my eyes and take in my surroundings.

"Where the hell am I?" I mutter and sit up. Pain sears up my left ribcage and my head throbs. I groan and notice movement next to me in the dim light.

"Lou? You up?" a girl's voice I recognize as Aria's mumbles.

"Yeah… What hap-" I stop midsentence. _Harry beat me up. Nice. _"Never mind. When can we leave?"

"Well it's 3:25am but if you want to leave now I suppose we could," she says and I see the outline of her getting up. "You feel alright? Looked like you took a beating," I can imagine her smirk.

I snort and shake my head, "Why are we all getting beat up?"

"Hey, just so you know, Niall took some things on Twitter to heart and I found him in the bathroom cutting himself. Apparently he told Liam he wouldn't do it anymore but can you keep an eye on our little leprechaun?" she asks softly.

"Bloody hell! Did he really? Poor Nialler, yeah of course I'll watch out for him," I say wide-eyed. Aria flicks on the lights and I see her nod somberly.

"I'll go get the doc and tell them we're ready to check out."

"Mkay," I say before lying back down and studying the ceiling in boredom.

**Liam's POV:**

**January 22****nd****, about 7:30am**

I wake up to sunshine streaming into my eyes. Niall is laying on the bed facing the other way still fast asleep. I get up quietly and take a quick shower. I change into a pair of jeans and pull on a hoodie and my white Converse. I check the rest of the bedrooms: Harry and Zayn are asleep in one and Paul isn't here… _Strange._

I grab a room key and slip it into my wallet as I step out into the hall. I notice a handwritten note on the door:

Got back from the hospital at about 3:40am. Louis crashed at my place. See you later!

-Aria xox

I slip it under the door so that the other boys will find it and head down to the lobby. Not many people are up and thankfully there are no paparazzi loitering around. I step out of the revolving doors and the cold air hits me. My breath swirls around in the crisp air as I hail a taxi. He drives me to the same Starbucks Aria had been to and I pay him. I shiver slightly and quickly make my way inside to the heated café. I order hot drinks for everyone and some muffins as well. As I step back out onto the sidewalk I inhale deeply and smile to myself.

_I feel like today is going to be really great. Yesterday is in the past._

I cross the road happily and am thinking about Niall who told me he would stop cutting when I car horn blares from my right. I turn to see the car heading right at me and I am paralyzed with fear. Then I am yanked back onto the sidewalk and the vehicle zooms over the spot I had just been.

_So much for it being a good day… _I think until I turn and see the face of my beautiful rescuer. _Damn, she's fit._

**Aria's POV:**

I wake up around 8 and check up on Lou. I had slept on the couch last night and let him occupy my bed. So sweet of me, I know. ;)

Louis is still sound asleep so I make my way down to the kitchen and pour myself a box of Frosted Flakes.

Dose thangs are da BOMB. Lol. _Wait, did I just 'lol' in my head? Hah. Ha._

I am dumping my bowl in the sink when I hear a light knock at the door.

I dry my hands off and look through the peephole: Niall is standing on the other side of the door with his hands in his jean pockets looking as adorable as always.

I open the door and smile warmly.

"Morning, Nialler!"

"G'morning, Aria," he laughs and I cherish the sound of it. "How's Lou?"

"I think he'll be fine. Just bruised up and all, I don't think we should go out in public much with him. Which reminds me; you should probably cover up your wrist with some bracelets..."

Niall pulls up the sleeve of his purple hoodie and I see that he's already got some on.

"Nice! Hey you wanna get some revenge on that Twitter bitch?" I say my face lighting up with an idea.

"Sure thing, darling," Niall chuckles.

"Let's go, hippo!" I joke and he pouts.

"I'm not a hippo!"

"Fine. You're a damn sexy hippo," I grin cupping his face in my hands jokingly. Too bad for Harry I wasn't joking when I told Niall he's damn sexy.

Before I even know what's happening Niall's lips are pressing gently onto mine and his hands rest on my waist. My hands still cup his face as he softly traces his tongue on my lower lip. _This is wrong. I'm cheating on Harry..._ But the thing is… I'm enjoying this. And I'm kissing Niall back.

**Lisbeth's POV:**

I bought my regular coffee for the day and was waiting to cross the street when an extremely sexy young man catches my eye. _He looks familiar…_

Then it hits me that he is crossing the road and a car honks at him frantically. I see him freeze as I lunge forward and grab his arm, pulling him back to the safety of the sidewalk. He turns to look at me and just stares. _Is there something on my face?_

"Uhhmm, are you crazy? You almost just died…" I blurt lamely and I feel heat rising to my face. He grins and nods.

"Maybe just a little. Thanks for saving my life, love," he winks at me and we start to walk across the road.

I laugh and study him harder, "Do I know you? I feel like I've seen you before! What school do you attend?"

"Oh, uh well I live around here… I don't go to school though," he replies avoiding my gaze. "My name's Liam."

"I'm Lisbeth. I'm a freshman at Kings College," I introduce myself with a smile.

"Nice to meet you Lisbeth! Since you saved my life and all, would you like to come back to my place and maybe we can go out to eat or something?" he asks shyly. _Awww, cute!_

"I'd love to, Liam."

What Liam doesn't know is my past. Full of secrets and lies; I had come here for a fresh start. And everything was falling into place; that was, until we arrived at Liam's hotel and realization hit. I recognized all 5 boys; and the girl, too.

**A/N: DRAMAAA haha thak you for reading and thank you oh so very much to my awesome reviewers! :D xx**


	22. Chapter 21 Bitch Say What

**Aria's POV:**

I pull out of the kiss rather reluctantly and Niall steps back immediately. I press my fingers to my mouth in shock at myself. _I just kissed Niall for the first time... And I'm dating Harry. Well isn't this just one fucked up world._

"I-I am so so sorry, Aria, I don't even know- Jesus Christ! Damn it, I'm so sorry!" Niall splutters while running a hand through his hair.

_I still have feelings for Niall. Maybe he's the one... I don't trust Harry fully anymore_...

**Niall's POV:**

Aria pulls out of the kiss and I snap back into reality. I step back in shock. _Fuck. Oh my fuck. WHAT HAVE I DONE._

"I-I am so so sorry, Aria, I don't even know- Jesus Christ! Damn it, I'm so sorry!" I splutter astounded at myself. _Now I've probably fucked up things even more between her and Harry..._

"I- oh my gosh, Niall. Ok this is not your fault-"

"Yes it is! Shit... I'll tell him," I say dreading that moment.

"Ok well maybe it's a teensy bit your fault too but it's mine as well! I'll tell him, I don't think Harry is completely trustworthy around you guys just yet. Yeah. Ok. I'll do it... Later," Aria tries to reassure herself.

"I am so sorry, Aria. I really am," I plead for forgiveness.

"Niall, why are you sorry? Honestly... I don't think that I am," and with that she turns and goes upstairs to check on Louis I guess. _The hell does that mean?!_

**Liam's POV:**

Practically the whole way back to the hotel I couldn't keep my eyes off of Lisbeth. She was just absolutely gorgeous. Her dirty blonde hair falls in long soft curls down her back and her deep bluish grey eyes sparkle brightly. ( cgi/set?id=58312430)

Just her laugh makes me happy and I think I'm falling for her by the minute. I plan to surprise her that I'm in a band.

Before we enter Aria's room (ours was empty so I figure that's where they all are) I explain that I am living with my 4 best friends and one of their girlfriends. Her face lights up at the mention of another girl and I swing open the door.

**Lisbeth's POV:**

When Liam tells me that there is another girl I lighten up. I was afraid they expected me to play video games with them or make them food. After all, boys are boys. And even extremely attractive ones are no exception ;)

Liam opens the door and I step in. I take in the scene. A tan boy with black hair and a blonde boy chase each other around the room with Nerf guns. I see the back of the girl dancing around the kitchen and a boy in a striped shirt sitting across the counter from her. He's holding an ice pack to his face and has a busted lip.

Another boy with brown curls is lying down on his back in the middle of the living room belting out lines of 'What Makes You Beautiful' quite perfectly, I'll admit. _This is one crazy family that's for sure,_ I think to myself smiling slightly. I'll fit right in.

Until the dark haired girl turns around and stops 'raising the roof'. _HOLY SHIT._

**Aria's POV:**

I am dancing around the kitchen while Louis criticizes my dance moves and nurses his injuries. What a sissy. A Nerf bullet flies past my head and I start to chase after Zayn. He runs away like a little girl and I go back to 'raising the roof'. Then I hear the door open and turn, expecting to see Liam. That sure as hell ain't Liam. Lisbeth's jaw drops and my eyes widen.

"Lizzie?" I whisper. Memories of us together flood my mind and we run to each other. We hug tightly and soon we are jumping up and down with glee like kids on Christmas.

I notice the boys all come into the foyer to see what the commotion was about but I'm too excited to pay attention to them now.

"What are you doing in London?" she gasps happily.

"Well what are you doing in my hotel room?" I joke and she laughs.

"I'll get you to answer my question later, missy!" she puts a hand on her hip then cracks a smile. "I came here with Liam! Still saving lives and I'm not even an agent anymore!"

Lizzie claps a hand over her mouth as soon as the words are out and I giggle.

"Don't worry. They know about the agency," I reassure her and her eyes get round. _Thank God I disabled all of the bugs last night that the Agency installed._

"You told them?" she gapes at me.

"Yeah. They were gonna find out anyways! I trust them."

"Who exactly is 'them'?" and not long after the words escape her lips realization lights up her face. "YOU'RE ONE DIRECTION!"

The boys who are all very confused by now just stare at her. Niall nods cautiously and she hides her inner fangirl as quickly as it came.

"That's cool," Lisbeth says calmly. I smile. _That's the old Lisbeth that I know._

**Harry's POV:**

After Liam picked up a rather fit girl from Starbucks and brought her back, Aria and she were acting like complete crazies. After they calmed down she introduced herself. Her name is Lisbeth, she just turned 18 and she attends Kings College. Buttttt she also is a spy. Well, she _was_ a spy. Apparently she quit and moved here for a fresh start.

Now we are all sitting at the kitchen enjoying the Starbucks that Liam brought home.

"So how exactly did you two meet?" I ask curiously while popping a bit of muffin into my mouth.

Lisbeth laughs lightly and looks to Liam for support.

"Well… see I was kind of distracted and I was walking across the street-" Liam blushes.

"And the crosswalk light was red," Lisbeth interjects.

"Yes, and so I almost got hit by a car when a lovely lady pulled me back and probably saved me from serious injury if not from death," Liam finishes smiling at her. She blushes and takes a sip of her coffee.

"One more thing. So you're from America right? Why don't you have an accent?" Niall questions innocently but Lisbeth freezes and Aria looks down while biting her lip.

"I… I didn't really want to stand out or raise questions about where I came from…" she says softly. Aria meets her gaze and Lisbeth nods slightly.

"Guys, a little over a year ago Lisbeth and I attended the academy together. Our older brothers were also the same age and one day Brandon was out doing normal stuff but an enemy agency tracked him down…" Aria pauses and takes a shaky breath. She whispers the next part sadly, "They murdered him when he wouldn't give away any information."

My heart breaks seeing either of the girls so sad. _I need to make up with Aria. She doesn't have to know about the club… It didn't mean anything._

Lisbeth explains that she dumped her secret agent status and moved on to London where she started college as a new person. Apparently it's extremely difficult to quit; if you know more valuable or confidential information it's even harder. I notice Aria standing at the edge of the kitchen and decide to make my move.

"Hey, can I talk to you?" I whisper in her ear. She nods and I take her hand in mine. We go up to her bedroom and she sits down on the edge of her bed.

"Aria, I love you. I've been reckless and made mistakes with Niall and Louis and you but I promise it won't happen again. Please forgive me?"I plead looking into her clear grey eyes.

She bites her lips and fidgets nervously, "Harry… there's something I need to tell you…"

_She can't break up with me! I need her! I love her!_

"Please, no, Aria! I love you, I'll do anything you want me to. I need you, Aria," I beg desperately grabbing her hands. I lean in and kiss her passionately before she pulls back abruptly.

A tear slips down her cheek. _This can't be happening! It can't! I need her to be mine-_

"No, Harry, it's not you; I know you've made mistakes and I forgive you but…" she pauses and chokes down a sob. "It's me! I did it! I'm so sorry, Harry! I wasn't thinking."

_What? _I sit down next to her and pull Aria close to my body.

"Shhh, baby it's ok! No, you didn't do anything, it was me. That night I left, I-" I try to tell her the truth but she cuts in.

"You don't understand! I kissed him! I kissed Niall!"

"You did what?"

**Aria's POV:**

Just when I had myself convinced that maybe I was right for Niall, Harry comes waltzing back into my life and screws my feelings up again. I fall in love with him all over again when he kisses me. So now it's really hard to tell him… about the _other _kiss. He still doesn't get it after my first attempt at telling him without dying of guilt. He pulls me in close and I cry silently.

"You don't understand! I kissed him! I kissed Niall!" I choke out and the tears fall faster.

"You did what?" he asks in disbelief. _FUCK! FUCK MY LIFE._

"I'm so sorry, Harry. I really do love you, but if a second chance is too much for me to ask of you I understand," I whisper sadly.

**Harry's POV:**

_We have one little fight and she goes and makes out with my best mate?! _Rage bubbles up inside of me when she starts whispering.

"I'm so sorry, Harry. I really do love you, but if a second chance is too much for me to ask of you I understand."

_I did worse. I love her. I love Aria._

"It's ok. I love you; we love each other and that's all that matters," I breathe on her neck while caressing her flawless face.

"Thank you…" she whispers shivering under my touch.

Aria lifts her mouth up to mine and I close the distance. We kiss deeply and her legs are wrapped around my waist when we finally pull apart for air.

"Was there something you were going to say about the night you left?" she asks innocently. Guilt rips through my heart.

"No, why?" I lie and start sucking on the sweet spot on her neck. Aria whimpers and puts her hands in my hair.

"Nevermind, Styles."

**Aria's POV:**

After making up with Harry- _no _not make up _sex_- I head downstairs alone since Harry had to use the bathroom. Liam and Lisbeth are cuddled up on the couch eating popcorn and watching Toy Story.

"Awww! You guys are so caayyuuutee!" I wink at Liam and flash them a thumbs-up.

_I can't believe Harry actually forgave me… I thought he'd hate me forever. But he was going to say something; I know it. Something about that night…_

"The rest of the lads went back to our room…" Liam hints and laughs at something Lisbeth says.

"Ok, ok I get it. I'll leave you lovebirds to it then! Don't mess up my bed! Or the couch…" I joke before grabbing my purse and heading over to the door.

They both blush and Lizzie flips me off.

"Love you, too, Lizzie!" I joke cheerfully and hear her laugh.

Then I go across the hall and enter World War 2. Well, the Nerf Battle version.

I do my _7__th_victory dance after shooting down Louis.

"TAKE THAT BITCHES!" I yell happily and someone tries to tackle me from behind.

I bend down and flip them over my head- making sure that they land on the couch. A blur of curls swishes over me and flies onto the cushions.

"Teach me! Teach me!" Niall jumps up and down adorably. I laugh and start to walk away when I'm picked up bridal style and thrown onto the couch. Harry jumps on top of me and starts nuzzling my neck.

"S-stop it! Haarrrrryyyy!" I whine between giggles. _Damn my ticklishness… _**(A/N LOL guys ticklishness is a word! Ahaha spellcheck didn't try to correct it.. well you learn something new every day! ;D) **He plants a kiss on my lips before hopping off and winking at me.

Louis raises his eyebrows, "So you guys made up I see?"

I nod and Harry waggles his eyebrows at Lou. I slap him playfully and Louis laughs.

"I take it there wasn't much talking involved then!"

"Louis Tomlinson!" I gasp.

"That's the name, don't wear it out!" he grins before Harry pulls him away.

I roll my eyes and turn my attention instead to Zayn and Niall who are complaining about their severe hunger. _Pussies…_

Nonetheless I walk into the kitchen and start making them lunch as any good body guard would. _Well actually I don't know that…Spoiled twats._

**Third Person:**

As Aria prepares some pasta in the kitchen, Harry and Louis go to their bedroom. Harry pushes the door behind him. Neither boy notices that it doesn't close all the way.

"Did you tell her?" Louis asks hoping that his best mate would tell Aria the whole truth.

"I tried! You havta trust me, I did. But she cut me off- mate, she and Niall made out!" Harry exclaims.

"They _made out_?"

"Well, she said that they 'kissed' but the term is quite generic, yeah?"

"Well, what did you do?"

"I forgave her…"

"And…?"

"I didn't tell her."

Aria asks Niall and Zayn what type of sandwich they want. They both tell her peanut butter and jelly. She walks to the bedroom to ask Louis and Harry the same thing.

**Aria's POV:  
** I walk up to the bedroom and I can hear Louis and Harry arguing since the door is cracked open… _What is with these boys?! _I am about to push inside when I hear Louis speak up.

"Harry, mate, she deserves to know! You can't keep stuff like this from your girlfriend!" _Dafuq?!_

"Oh, and I suppose you want me to just walk up and say, 'Oh hey Aria, on that night that I ran away cause I was mad at you, I got piss drunk and fucked some 30 year old bitch at the club but please don't be mad'. Louis this is harder than it seems!" Harry mocks and my mouth falls open.

_BITCH SAY WHAT._

I barge through into the room and put a hand on my hip, "You did _what _Mr. Styles?"

**A/N: heyy guysss so school has started so I probably wont be updating as frequently :( sorry! But thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed :D did you guys watch the VMAs? so proud3 hehe also just a reminder that this story is also on One direction fanfiction .net and .com and I have the same username: shellieflower22. i pay more attention to my story on ONDFF .net just FYI :) thank you!xxx**


	23. Chapter 22 Family Roots

**Michael's POV (Aria's Brother):  
Los Angeles, California, USA**

It's the anniversary of my mom's death. _I should check up on Aria… I haven't even texted her since I left. She was 14 years old and I was 16. Now I'm 18 years old and I don't even know where she is… or if she's even still at the Academy._

I pull out my phone and begin to type a message when it starts to ring.

**Incoming call: Unknown number**

_Ugh. Please not another assignment. I just got back from tailing a suspect late last night._

I swipe my thumb across the screen and bring the phone up to my ear.

"Hello?" I say wearily.

"I'm here," a scratchy voice comes through. _It can't be. No fucking way in hell. Why the fuck is my _father _here? _I hang up and trace the call. _Holy shit._ He is here. Only blocks away from my dorm.

I should've told Aria as soon as I found out yesterday; I was looking through The Database and found records of a girl… the same age as Aria. And we all have the same father. I don't know how he kept it secret for so long… or why he didn't tell us after Mom died. But anyways I should probably call Aria right now and tell her.

**Liam's POV:**

When the movie ends Lisbeth and I just stay cuddled up on the couch. I really really _really _like her. A lot.

"Well, I better get going. I have a few essays to do and whatnot… I had a lot of fun, Liam," she sighs and pulls herself off the couch.

"Wait! Lisbeth?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you want to go out to dinner with me tomorrow night?"

She smiles, "I would love to."

_SCORE._

"See you at 5 tomorrow then?" I ask.

"It's a date," she confirms giggling.

I get up and kiss her on the cheek before she leaves. Lisbeth turns red as a tomato and I wave as she exits. As soon as the door closes I do my victory dance.

"WOOOOO!" I yell and run over to my hotel room to tell everyone about the date.

**Harry's POV:**

"Harry, mate, she deserves to know! You can't keep stuff like this from your girlfriend!" Louis reprimands me.

"Oh, and I suppose you want me to just walk up and say, 'Oh hey Aria, on that night that I ran away cause I was mad at you, I got piss drunk and fucked some 30 year old bitch at the club but please don't be mad'. Louis this is harder than it seems!" I say exasperatedly when the door swings open and I freeze wide-eyed.

"You did _what _Mr. Styles?" Aria demands with a hand on her hip. My mouth tries to form words but no sound escapes. "I confessed _everything _to you and fucking _begged_ for your forgiveness when really you were lying the damn time whole time?! You don't love me! I'm just another bitch for you to toy with aren't I?!"

"Aria, I was going to, I promise-"

"Promise? Oh yeah cause you've been _real_ brilliant at keeping those lately!" she fumes and her cheeks glisten with tears.

Then she whips out her phone and lets out a frustrated groan.

**Aria's POV:**

My phone starts to buzz in my pocket and I groan. _UGH! Why can't I have one moment of peace?! _I take it out and see that it's… Michael? _What the fuck?_

"What the hell do you want?!" I yell into the phone. _I am not in the mood._

"Aria? Is everything ok?" his concerned voice comes through.

"No! It is not fucking ok! Why are you calling me now of all times? I haven't even heard from you in like 2 years! Why _now_?"

"Chill your pants bro! Jesus Christ! Ok I'll just cut to the chase. I was looking in the database and turns out Dad had sex with some other bitch and she got preggers and then had the baby. We have a half-sister and she's your age."

"_Excuse me_?!"

"Her name is Vannesa."

**A/N: sorry this is so short! I just needed to get that out there :D Vannesa is one of my besties on Onedirectionfanfiction .net and .com so yep :) thanks for reading and please review! I love getting feedback :)**


	24. Chapter 23 Ice Cream Therapy

**Niall's POV:**

So I guess Aria and Harry made up this morning. Even after I kissed Aria, Harry forgave her which really doesn't seem like a Harry thing to do… I think he's hiding something from us. And I'll be completely honest; I kinda wanted Harry to stay mad at Aria so that maybe I could have a chance to better get to know her. In a more than friendly way, that is.

"Hey boys! What type of sandwich do you want?" Aria asks while walking out of the kitchen with her hair in a sloppy bun.

"Peanut butter and jelly!" Zayn and I say at the same time. I laugh and Aria smiles.

"You got it," she winks and heads toward Louis and Harry's bedroom to ask them the same thing I suppose.

I'm messing around on my phone when Zayn and I hear yelling from the other room. I glance over worriedly and Zayn furrows his eyebrows.

'What the hell?' he mouths.

Just then the door bursts open and Liam struts (yes I said _struts_) in with huge grin plastered on his face. His smile fades when he notices our sincerity.

"What's going on?" he asks clearly just as puzzled as the rest of us.

Suddenly, Aria stomps into the living room with tear stains on her cheek. _That poor girl has been crying way too much lately…_

"I have a fucking sister and I never even knew! How fucked up is that?" she exclaims in disbelief. _Wait, what?! _"We could have gone to school together, had sleepovers, partied and been best friends by now but I never knew!"

"What?" Zayn says dumbfounded.

Aria huffs and clenches her fists, "My dumb bitch of a father went and fucked some lady other than my mom and she got pregnant and had the baby."

My jaw drops and Liam covers his mouth in shock.

"Th-that's horrible… I'm so sorry, Aria," I stutter and pull her in for a hug.

She buries her head in my shoulder and wraps her arms around me tightly.

"I mean I'm glad I have a sister though… I just wish that it weren't under these circumstances, ya know?" her voice is muffled from my shirt.

"Yeah, I get you… but were you talking to your dad? It sounded like you were yelling in there," I ask curiously and Zayn and Liam look at her for an answer.

"Oh… well my brother actually told me. But the yelling…" she pulls out of my embrace and bites her lip. "Harry cheated on me."

"He did what?!" we all exclaim. Louis and Harry still aren't out here. _How could he do that to Aria? After all she's been through since she got here! That little prick…_

"That night he was gone… he was at the club," her lip starts to bleed and her voice catches. "Fucking some cougar… "

"What the fuck is wrong with that douche bag?! Why the fuck would he want some old whore over you?" I demand angrily.

"Bigger boobs?" she shrugs and cracks a small smile. We all snort and roll our eyes.

"Well I think that you're beautiful," I say hugging her again.

"Hug Aria if you agree with Niall!" Zayn yells and we all do a group hug (well minus Lou and Harry).

"Now who wants lunch?!" Aria says trying to hide her obvious stress.

"I DO!" I can't help myself; I'm starving!

"What about Harry?" Liam says quietly.

"He can make his own damn sammich," Aria responds darkly only half joking.

**Aria's POV:**

After making a whole platter of PB&J sandwiches and setting it down on the table, Liam looks like he's about to burst. (Only Harry is missing; Louis joined us but hasn't said a word).

"Ok, spit it out, Liam!" I say grinning. _I have a feeling it has to do with Lisbeth. ;)_

"I've got a date!" he blurts happily and we all cheer and clap.

"Nice! With Lisbeth, yeah?" Louis speaks for the first time since I found out.

"When is it?!" I say excitedly and make a mental note to call Lizzie later.

"Tomorrow night. I'm going to take her out to dinner and a movie," he says through a huge smile.

"Awww! She'll love it!"

"You think so?"

"FO SHOW!" I yell and we all laugh.

**Vannesa Bond's POV:  
1pm- January 22nd  
Washington, DC, United States of America**

Exactly 24 hours ago I met my father for the first time. Yeah, that son of a bitch just turned up on my mom's porch piss drunk and spilled shit. My mom raised me by herself; she _never _mentioned anything about my father before. So here's what went down:

My father (ew! Do have to call him that?!), William Jasper Roch, had a wife (and cheated on her!) and he was also principal of a spy academy. Not just another school for secret agents, oh hell no. He was the principal of our rival agency. J. Roch Academy. Fuck! The place was even named after his bloodline! But anyways, when I say 'our' I mean SET Academy (School for the Exceptionally Talented…aka spies :P). My mom just happens to be the principal and somehow some way they hooked up and she got preggers with _moi_.

Then BAM. They suspect something's up, fire Mr. William Roch, and pretend nothing ever happened. Some dude named Hayes runs shit over there now. We're just lucky that they never found out on my mom's end.

BUT the fact that my mom had sex with Roch isn't even the most shocking thing; I HAVE A FUCKING SISTER! And brother… but the point is, I could've had an amazing childhood with her and we could be best friends but instead I have no fucking clue about them until my daddy tells me in a drunken state while vomiting in our posh kitchen. Great.

Anyways… she's actually my _half _sister but she is the same age as me! Like how fucking awesome is that? We're like… half twins or something! I think her name is like Ariana or something… my dad mentioned it but his speech was all slurred so yeah. And my brother is two years older and he lives in California. And so right now I'm going to call him. I hope he's cool. And has hot friends… yeah I definitely hope that he has hot friends.

**Michael's POV:**

"Her name's Vannesa," I tell Aria.

The line clicks and I know she hung up. _Well something's up… besides the fact that we have a sister. I didn't even tell Aria that Dad is here…_

My phone starts to buzz.

**Incoming call: Vannesa Bond**

_HOLY SHIT! How the fuck did she find me?!_

"Hello?" I say nervously. _This is just some sick coincidence… It has to be._

"Hey, is this Michael? Michael Roch?" a girl's voice comes through clearly.

"Actually I use my mother's maiden name… Blackwood," I explain. _Where is she going with this?!_

"Oh, right. I would do that too if I were in your shoes. Your father's a bitch. Or should I say, _our _father's a bitch."

"E-excuse me?" I stutter astonished at her knowledge.

"You heard me, Michael. We have the same father. He came by yesterday drunk as fuck and told me everything. I attend SET Academy in Washington D.C." she says calmly. _SET Academy?! Fuck. Fuck. FUCKITY FUCK FUCK._

"You're an agent, too?" I manage to get out.

"Yeah. And I'm assuming you attend an academy as well?" she confirms.

"Yep… I'm in California now. He dropped a line this morning… he's here. In Los Angeles."

"Bitch say what."

"Right?! I don't know what he wants from me… or if he's keeping even more from us. Hey, when you called your ID showed up as Vannesa Bond… you don't happen to be…?"

"Hell yeah I am! James Bond is my uncle's great grandfather. Jealous?" she laughs. "But if you were going to say Diana Bond's daughter then yes to that question as well. Pretty ironic, huh?"

_Ironic?! THIS IS SO FUCKED UP! Diana Bond is the principal of SET Academy! No wonder Dad got fired…_

"That's cool…" I say weakly.

"You know it, sir," she giggles. "Hey is Ariana by chance near you?"

"Actually it's Aria… and no. She's on an assignment in London right now."

"Ok thanks. That's all I need to know! Nice meeting you, _brother_!" she says cheerfully.

"Nice meeting you, too, _sister_," I emphasize our relation just as she had. _This girl is cray cray._

**Vannesa's POV:**

The printer finished working and I pick up the piece of paper that will change my life forever:

(**A/N did that show up? Let me know in your review please! It's a boarding pass if you can't see it)**

I'm going to London to meet my sister.

**Aria's POV:  
around 5pm**

I'm sitting on the couch eating ice cream and watching Survivor. _These wimps can't take nothing! I'd love to be stranded on a beach island… and lose some weight while I'm at it!_

I got a text from Michael a few minutes ago. Apparently my sister is a Bond… I feel inferior :P

My thoughts are interrupted by someone opening my door. Probably one of the lads coming to check on me. I've been holed up in here for hours crying… about Harry. About my broken family. About my mom (it's the anniversary of her death). About my fucked up life.

I guess I just wasn't good enough for Harry... I don't think I'm good enough for anyone. I'm so… selfish… ugly, confused and useless. I can't do anything right. All I've done since I got to London is screw things up; screw people up.

"Oi! Save some for me, would ya?" Niall says lightly plopping down on the couch next to me. I fly up off the cushion and my spoon clatters to the floor.

"Fatty!" I exclaim while pouting and looking at my spoon willingly. _Maybe if I stare at it long enough it'll come to me. Ok… nevermind._

"You're the one eating it!"

"He speaks the truth!" I say in what I think is a 'wise' voice. "I swear ice cream is like therapy in the form of food…"

"Words of wisdom right there!" Niall laughs and pulls out his phone. "'aria_roseb: Ice cream is like therapy in the form of food' Well said, well said," he says out loud while typing his tweet. I roll my eyes and giggle.

I change the channel and see a news reporter standing outside of… Royalty Suites?! _OH HELL NO._

"Niall…" I say shaking his shoulder to get his attention.

"Rumor has it that teen heart throb Harry Styles has been sulking around London today. What is the reason behind the gloom? We are trying to find out now. Multiple sources have suggested that it might correspond to his relationship with a certain girl named Aria Blackwood," a picture of me and Harry the day we toured London fills the screen. Then one of Harry which appears to be from earlier today. _He looks depressed… we should talk… Later._

Niall pulls me into a hug and squeezes my shoulders.

"They can't find out about the club… I just hope that whore doesn't remember who she went all the way with and spills the deets to the media," I think out loud.

"Yeah. They'll find out about you know, you guys… but I think you might have to make up a different reason for your break up," Niall says softly and kisses my head.

"Hey, remember how we were gonna get revenge on that fucker from Twitter?" I say suddenly remembering my fabulous idea from before.

"Uhmm… yeah?"

"Let's do this shit."

"Hey Johnny, could you do me a favor?" I ask my best guy friend back at the agency after he picks up on the first ring.

He is a fucking GENIUS when it comes to computers and hacking and all that. But he's also a badass field agent- not the stereotypical computer geek. He's also extremely fit. But I can never imagine him as more than a brother.

"Yeah sure, what's up?" Niall looks at me anxiously and I flash him a smile.

"Can you hack into a certain Twitter account and give me all her personal info?"

"Absolutely. Do I even want to know what this is about?"

"No… no you do not."

Johnny chuckles and I can hear him typing on a keyboard, "Alright, what's her username?"

I clear my throat and glance nervously at Niall. He looks at the floor and I say as quietly as I can, "1D_minus_niall."

"Oh… ok. I got you, sista," I hear him clacking away. "So how's it going so far? I heard you were getting it on with Harry Styles."

I can practically hear him smirk through the phone. Weird right? "It's going fabulous. And uhh… as of right now… let's just say things are complicated."

"Oh. Sorry to hear that… Ok I'm sending a file to your laptop, just download it and I have it programmed to automatically log you into Twitter as her and gain access to all of her personal information. Anything else while I'm in the lab?" _Damn, this boy is good!_

"Uh, yeah actually. One more thing. Can you send me everything we've got on Vannesa Bond?"

"Sure thing. Hey, I heard your dad was spotted in the LA area… isn't that where your brother lives now?"

"Yes… is everything ok?"

"Right now? Yeah. In the next 24 hours? No promises. I'd keep checking in on him if I were you."

"Thanks," I say sucking in a sharp breath. My father is a dangerous person. Put the body of an amazing A-Team secret agent together with mental instability… and you've got yourself a safety hazard. "I'll talk to you later, bro. Gotta run. Text me!"

"Alright, I will. Love ya, stay safe!"

"Love you, too," I laugh. "I'll try. Bye!"

I hang up and pull my laptop onto my lap. Niall leans in as I load the file and learn everything Little Miss Twitter Bitch doesn't want me to know. We go onto Twitter and I start tweeting as her:

**1D_minus_niall: im such a bitch lol I have no friends #loner**

**1D_minus_niall: wow im a loser. Im so sorry NiallOfficial ! im kind of jealous #confessions**

**1D_minus_niall: I eat my poop that's why im a piece of shit #justsayin**

**1D_minus_niall: I think someone is going to pull a prank on me… I deserve it 100%**

Niall raises his eyes at the last tweet, "What are you thinking?"

"We're going to Miss Madison bitchface Donner's house," I say darkly while rummaging through the kitchen cabinets. _Thank God she lives only 5 minutes away from here. She is making this too easy._

_100 plastic forks: check.  
2 dozen eggs: check.  
10 rolls of toilet paper: check.  
Red paint: check._

It's time to get revenge, bitches.


	25. Chapter 24 We know where you live

**Vannesa's POV:  
Somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean**

After Michael gave me a rough location and full name of my sister I was able to find her exact coordinate on the globe. She's staying in Royal Suites, London. Room 499. Amazing what our computers can do at the academy now.

I check the time on my iPhone. It's only 6:40pm EST. 5 hours left on this crowded jet. The old man two seats away from me is snoring as loud as fuck. I can't wait to be in London.

**Lisbeth's POV:  
About 6pm; Kings College, London**

I'm in my dorm telling my roomies all about Liam when my phone starts to buzz.

**Incoming call: Aria Mah Main Nig**

I chuckle at the contact name we had come up with at least 3 years ago.

"Hey, Aria! What's up?"

"Niall and I are doing a prank. Wanna come?"

"It's only 6:20…" I question while checking a clock.

"Yeah but it'll be nightfall by 7 at the latest. Plus we need time to strategize. I already have the supplies but we need a detailed plan," she explains obviously proud of her plan.

I laugh lightly, "Ok girl. Should I come to your place?"

"Yeah. Room 499."

"I remember. I still have the memory of a secret agent you know."

She laughs, "Whatever, Liz. Get yo ass over here."

I roll my eyes, "I'll be there in 10. Bye!"

"Bye Lizzie!"

Before leaving I grab a few of my own things to add to this prank. I'm gonna make this a night to remember for the victim (whoever she is).

On the drive to the hotel all I can think about is Liam. I am so ecstatic about our date tomorrow it's probably unhealthy… BUT FUCK THAT! _I've got a date with Leeeeyuummm; I'm going on a date with Leeyyyyuumm! Yeahhh, suck it bitches! God, how on earth did I get a guy as gorgeous and pure as Liam Payne?! I must be the luckiest girl on the planet right now._

**Aria's POV:  
6:31pm, Royal Suites, London**

"Lisbeth is the BEST at pranking," I gush to Niall as I lick some cookie dough off of a spoon. _I need to go work out…_

"I'm sure she is. Are we walking there?" he says while eyeing the leftover batter in the bowl.

"Hell yeah we are! How else would we get there unnoticed? Niall, you have to treat this like an assignment. Like a spy assignment. If you wanna be one, you gotta start acting like one," I advise him.

"Whatever. Please don't tell me I have to dress like a fucking ninja…?"

"Well, because you brought it up- yes. Yes, you do."

"Ariaaa!" Niall whines adorably and his big blue eyes melt my heart.

"I was just joking, Niall!" I say laughing. Then I add seriously, "If I wasn't though I'd probably give in to those eyes in a heartbeat."

He grins and winks at me. I almost lose myself in his bright orbs. _Why aren't my eyes that damn gorgeous?! Not fair._A knock at the door breaks our shared gaze and I go to answer it.

"Eyyy girlfrann! I brought stuff," Lisbeth greets me with a wink.

I laugh and let her in. "I'm glad you could make it! We're gonna bring pranking up to a whole new level."

At precisely 7:14pm we creep into Madison's neighborhood. We are all wearing dark jeans and dark sweatshirts ( prank_night/set?id=59172302 )and I have a black backpack full of our supplies. The plan:

1. Teepee all of the trees in her yard (there should be 3 dogwoods and an oak)

2. Sneak into her room and write a message on her computer

3. put itch powder into her deodorant and hairbrush

4. fork her lawn

5. egg her car

6. leave a nice warning on the front windshield

7. kill the power in her house

8. run for the hills.

We jog up to her house and pause at the end of her driveway. We are each wearing a pair of gloves so that they can't find any fingerprints. We crouch behind some bushes by her mailbox and Lisbeth observes the house.

"She's in her room. We're gonna have to adjust our plan a tad…" Lisbeth reports and looks down at a camera thing. "It's a heart beat sensor. Looks like she's the only one home."

"So we're gonna need to get her out of her room?" I nod slowly.

"Yep. Aria can you do that? As soon as you do it send us 3 texts in a row so we don't even have to check our phones to know it's you," I instruct and she nods. "Niall, I'm going to climb up into her room and do the computer message and itch powder. Can you teepee the trees and start with the forks?"

"Yeah, sure," Niall says eagerly.

"Let's get this bitch!"

**Aria's POV:**

I sneak up to the front porch and hide below the porch light so I don't have a shadow. Taking out an alarm disarmer, I disable the home security system and take a bobby pin out of my hair. In 7 seconds I have the door open and slip inside.

I can hear music blasting upstairs and some horrible singing accompanying it. I roll my eyes in disgust and move forward to the kitchen. I find a thermostat in the hall on the way there and turn the heat off and AC all the way up. Next the TV; volume to the max. I do the same to the radio in the kitchen. I open the fridge doors and cold seeps out into the room. The AC turns on with a loud whirring sound and pull out dozens of pans and metal trays to the ground with a loud clattering. I quickly turn on the kitchen sink and the bathroom sink as well. Flush the toilet, send 3 texts to Lizzie and Niall, and run out the back door. Before I close the sliding glass door I hear footsteps coming down the stairs. _BOOYAH!_

**Niall's POV:**

About 3 minutes after Aria disappeared into the house, Lisbeth and my phones started to buzz. _Game time._

Lisbeth flashes me a thumbs up before running up to the garage and getting out a... gun? _Da_ _fuq?!_

I shrug and rummage through the bag by the mailbox that we brought with us. Wow, they even have a cannon of some sort that I can use to shoot the toilet paper up into the trees with… I wish I was a spy. That'd be pretty badass.

I load the first roll in and aim up at the Oak tree. I pull the trigger and the toilet paper spirals out with a dull thud noise. The tail gets longer and snags on all the branches. I grin and shoot another and another. Then I see a dark figure running towards me and do the only logical thing at the moment: fire the cannon.

**Aria's POV:**

I hop over the fence in the Donners' backyard and race to the front yard where Niall is shooting toilet paper gleefully into the treetops. _Darling boy :)_

As I get closer I see his eyes shine in the darkness and aim at m- _OH FUCK NO!_

_PLUNK – _is all I hear before the roll hits me in the gut and I pretend to roll in agony all the way to Niall's feet. I keep my eyes closed and groan convincingly.

"Holy shit! Aria! Ohmygod are you ok? Jesus Christ! I just got scared- Ah please tell me you're ok?!" Niall whisper yells and shakes my shoulder gently. I reply with a whimper and he kneels beside me worriedly. I feel his fingers graze my forehead and brush the hair out of my face.

**Madison Donner's POV:**

I'm singing beautifully to my music and checking Twitter when I can almost swear I hear the front door open… _No, the alarm would've gone off._ I'm home alone for once because my parents are at a work party or something. So I'm taking advantage of this night by doing the one thing they hate most- blasting my music and singing. I don't know why they don't like my singing… I'm thinking about auditioning for the X-Factor this year. I'm sure as hell better than Niall Horan. Pffft.

My attention turns back to the screen and I type up a quick tweet:

** 1D_minus_niall: home alone tonight= loud music and lovely singing. Better than Niall_Official 's singing at least #fuckmyparents #1DminusNiall**

Then my heart nearly stops when I read the tweets from earlier today… because I wasn't on all day until now.

**1D_minus_niall: im such a bitch lol I have no friends #loner**

_WHAT THE FUCK?!_

**1D_minus_niall: wow im a loser. Im so sorry NiallOfficial ! im kind of jealous #confessions**

_OH HAILL NO NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS I AIN'T._

**1D_minus_niall: I eat my poop that's why im a piece of shit #justsayin**

_That's just sick. Stupid hacker…_

**1D_minus_niall: I think someone is going to pull a prank on me… I deserve it 100%**

_Bitch say_ _what._

Loud noises from downstairs tear my attention away from the screen. _Oh fuck, no._

I trot down the stairs and shiver involuntarily. _Since when is it so cold in the house?! _Then I see it all. The TV is on, the fridge is open, radio's blasting, sinks are running, pans clutter the kitchen floor. And the thermostat; set to 55°F?!

"Wow! Ha- ha. Aren't you just a fabulous pranker?" I say loudly and sarcastically. But on the inside I'm screaming.

This sure as hell ain't some lousy worked up Directioner I'm dealing with here.

**Lisbeth's POV:**

I remove the grappling gun out of my waistband and turn safety off. Ready to go. _Wow, I haven't done this in a while…_

My finger squeezes the trigger and the cord shoots out and latches to Madison's window sill. I pull the retract trigger and I zoom up to the second level of the house. Using a few of my own tools I open the window and slide in. I slide the gun back into my waistband and get to work.

Her computer is open to her Twitter page and I have to bite my lip to keep from bursting out in laughter. "I eat my poop that's why im a piece of shit". Ohhhh, Aria. Such a naughty girl.

I run into her bathroom and find her hairbrush and deodorant. I tear open the bag of itch powder I had saved from my pranking days at the Academy and sprinkle it onto her brush and stick of deodorant. Yeah, 'Oo La La Lavender' is gonna turn into 'Oo ah ah Imma gorilla'. Hah. Suck it, bitch.

I have some left over so I just pour it onto the toilet seat and on her make-up brushes. I am walking back to her room when I hear her talking. Oh shit.

"Wow! Ha- ha. Aren't you just a fabulous pranker?" her snotty voice echoes up to my position. I snort and send her an anonymous text that can't be traced: **Yes, yes I am.**

I jog to her open laptop and tweet a message quickly:

** 1D_minus_niall: you better watch your back, bitch. We know where you live… obviously.**

**Aria's POV:**

"Well fuck you, too!" I joke at Niall springing back up to my feet. He gapes at me and punches my shoulder playfully.

"You are too sweet, hun!" I laugh and he pouts.

"Whatever. Let's hurry up, Lisbeth should be done soon!" Niall says hurriedly.

We fire the rest of the rolls into the trees and I open the bottle of dark red paint and begin to write on the windshield of a red convertible. I'm assuming its Madison's because the license plate says "2good4u". _Yeah at what?_ _Being a piece of shit?_

Niall walks up with the egg cartons just as Lizzie hops out of the window and jogs up beside me.

**Niall's POV:**

I walk up with the eggs and spot Lizzie jump down from the second story! Crazy spies…

Aria has written "we can make you regret…" across the windshield in drippy letters.

"So remind me what these are for?" I whisper while handing the eggs to Lizzie.

"We're gonna egg her car… I'm pretty sure it's strictly an American thing," she explains quietly while opening the cartons. She sets it on the hood and grins mischievously. "Ready… set… throw!"

Suddenly Aria and Lisbeth begin to chuck the eggs at the car. My mouth falls open and I start to laugh. I join in and soon we have used all of the eggs.

"Alright guys, get ready to run. Niall grab the bag on our way out, mkay?"

"Uhhh…" I give her a strange look when she pulls on the door of the convertible and the shrill car alarm pierces the air.

"GO!"

The girls sprint ahead of me and I follow in a panic. I sling the bag over my shoulder without even slowing down. Adrenaline pumps through our bodies as we run until we are out of the neighborhood.


	26. They Know Where I Live

**OK so this is just Madison's POV its her reaction to the prank basically. Sorry for the wait! i updated on the other websites but forgot this one :/ sorry! posting the next chappie right now... thank you to all my readers and BEAUTIFUL reviewers! I love you anonymous review whoever you are :) and The Black Dove Flyeth of course :D xxx**

**Madison Donner's POV:**

"Wow! Ha- ha. Aren't you just a fabulous pranker?" I say loudly and sarcastically. But on the inside I'm screaming.

My phone buzzes in my pocket. I take it out and gasp at the new message: **Yes, yes I am.**

_HOLY FUCKING SHIT THEY'RE STILL IN MY HOUSE!_

Fear courses through my veins and try to convince myself that this isn't happening.

I fix the thermostat, turn off the TV and radio, close the fridge, and neaten up the kitchen. My heart is pounding with fear and I curse my trembling hands as the pans fall out again. _Shit._ I leave them and just go to turn off all of the sinks.

The next few things are a blur: I take out my phone and start to call my parents when the lights go out and I'm engulfed in darkness. My shrieks are drowned out by my car alarm blaring from the driveway. I pitch myself out the front door and trip off of the front walkway.

I yelp as I soar onto the grass but sharp things stab my body as I land on top of them. I whimper and start to cry as I pull myself up. I can barely see what I landed on so I grab around and pick up at least five and bring them close to my face. I shine my light on the objects and see… Forks? _WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!_

The car alarm has stopped by now but I have a headache from the noise. I sniffle and look up wearily, shining my phone around the yard. Toilet paper droops from all of the trees and my car- OH MY FUCKING GOD MY POOR BABY!

I run over stumbling through my forked lawn and examine my car in misery. Eggs are splattered all over the hood and sides, dirtying the shiny red paint job. I let out a loud wail of despair and stomp around to the front of my car.

'we can make you regret…'

My wail turns to a scream of terror and I dial my father. He doesn't pick up and neither does my mom when I call her phone.

"UGH! Fucking parents!" I sob and trudge over to the electrical box. I start flipping random switches and surprisingly the lights flicker back to life. _Finally! One good thing that's happened to me tonight._

Wearily, I run back inside and lock the front door behind me. I assume that the attackers have left since my car would be on their way out. I strut up the stairs and go to the bathroom. My mascara is in black streaks down my face and my eyes are red. I jump in the shower and wash away my worries. Not really but it made me feel better. Kind of. I check my phone and see a new text. I anxiously open it and see its from… Andrew! _OMG I knew he liked me! Yay me, yay me, yay me!_

**Andrew3: hey wanna skype? :)**

I reply immediately: **sure thing ;) give me 5 xx**

I smile and get dressed in some super short and tight yoga shorts and a cropped tank top that shows a lot of my skin and really accentuates my boobs. I just know Andrew will love it. ( cgi/set?id=59521212 )

I brush out my hair and apply some of my 'Oo La La Lavender' deodorant. I quickly apply some powder to my face and a thick coat of mascara and eyeliner. I do a heavy smoky eye and smear some shiny lip gloss on. I pucker my lips and smirk at my sexy reflection. _Andrew won't be able to resist…_

I slide into my chair at my desk and log into Skype. Within seconds Andrew is calling me. I flip my hair and lean forward so that the camera has a good angle on my cleavage. His hot face appears on my screen and his eyes widen.

"Hey, Andrew," I say flirtatiously when all of a sudden my head starts to itch like fuck. I whip my hair around and try to make it seem attractive but it's so itchy I can hardly stand it.

"Uhhmm.. hi… Madison. What's up?"

I give in and start to scratch my head furiously. _Ahhh, sweet relief…_

"OH! Uhm, well my parents are out so I was singing to my music. Wanna hear?" I wink.

"Sure, I guess."

I get up and make sure he can see my butt well as I lean over my bed and turn my iPod dock on. I sit back down and cross my arms under my chest.

"Brrr… it's so fucking cold in my house!" I exclaim while squeezing my boobs together. I scratch my head again. Andrew seems unimpressed… _What is wrong with this boy?! Whatever. He'll just have to love my singing._

"Ok… The type of girl you wanna chew all of my bubble gum (yep) the type of gurl you wanna chew all of my bubble gum. I'm the type of girl ya wanna take to ya mama house, t-t-t-take to ya mama house," I sing when my armpits start to itch. _What the fuck?! _

I try to sing the rest normally, "The Georgia Peach and I'm back again it's time to do the damn thang, better tell ya friends (take'em back). First thangs first: I Sheeda, mess around wit no man who won't eat her (naw). It's time to get it straight, these suckas round here trippin, ya know you do it boy, so gone and keep it pimpin!"

"Got that Juicy Fruit, certified Bubble Yum. He goin' down, chewin on my bubble gum. Sometimes you gotta direct 'em like traffic, I don't cum quick, but when I do its fantastic! I get 'em wide open, oh I think he like me. Got that Aquafina make them boys wanna wife me," I scratch my armpits (not so) subtly (OK I look like a fucking gorilla!) and have to stop because now my face is burning as well. I rub my cheeks frantically and rake my nails on my irritated scalp.

Andrew is gaping, "Uhm, wow. You're really good… well um, I gotta go now… bye!" He clicks off.

"WAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" I wail and run to the shower completely humiliated. I stand under the scalding water singing the rest of 'Chew My Bubble Gum' by Rasheeda.

I get out after scrubbing my skin raw and check my Twitter. Another tweet as 'me' shows up:

** 1D_minus_niall: you better watch your back, bitch. We know where you live… obviously.**

Holy shit; I'm so fucked.


	27. Chapter 25 Pushing Buttons

**Lisbeth's POV:**

We don't stop sprinting until we are out of the neighborhood. It's around 7:40pm but I decide to go back to my dorm since I need to get up early for school tomorrow (Thursday).

"Hey guys, I'm gonna head back to my place since I have school tomorrow," I sigh and start looking for a taxi.

"Alright, well nice job tonight. We miss you back at the agency," Aria smiles.

"Of course you do; I don't understand how they can function without my amazing ninja skills," I joke and we all chuckle.

"Yet somehow we get by…" Aria laughs.

"Ok well see you all tomorrow maybe before or after the date?"

"Oh yeah! Congrats by the way," Aria nods.

"He's a really good lad," Niall adds.

"Thanks guys! Ok night!" I say before hailing a taxi and getting inside.

_This is the most fun I've had in years… and I have a feeling it isn't stopping here._

**Niall's POV:**

After Lisbeth leaves, Aria and I take our time walking back. Our breath fogs up the cold air and Aria shivers in her light sweater.

"Why didn't you wear a jacket?" I reprimand her jokingly.

"I didn't have any that would match!" she exclaims like it's the most obvious thing.

I roll my eyes and pull my sweatshirt over my head. _Thank God I have on a long sleeve shirt… _I hand Aria my already warm Jack Wills hoodie.

"Oh my gosh, Niall you really don't have to! You're going to freeze! It's only it little ways farther I'll be fine!" she says wide eyed trying to give it back to me.

"No!" I laugh. "Just put it on while it's still warm would ya?"

She shakes her head but slips it on gratefully. I pull her towards me and she leans her head on my shoulder. _Why does she have to be so damn attractive?!_

"Thanks," she whispers and I crack a smile.

"My pleasure, love. So what are you gonna do about your sister?"

She thinks for a moment, "I don't really know… I guess after I get back to the states I'll find her and maybe or maybe not stay in contact with her? I just hope she isn't some airhead…"

"I'm sure she won't. I mean your dad was a spy too right? Aren't all spies smart?" I wonder out loud.

"Yeah… some too smart for their own good…" she says softly and I leave the topic at that.

"Are you going to talk to Harry when we get back?" I ask cautiously. I am still furious at him for what he did so I don't trust myself to have a peaceful conversation with him… yet.

"No," Aria states bluntly. "He can come to me. Stupid man whore."

I smile and nod in agreement, "I'll support you no matter what, always remember that."

"Thank you, Niall. Sometimes I feel like you're the only one I can really trust," she sighs as we walk up to the revolving doors of Royalty Suites.

It's about 8pm and only a few paparazzi linger around. Aria pulls up the hood and I drop the hand I had around her waist. I wave to a few as they snap pictures and ask questions. We walk quickly through the lobby and get into the elevator with an overweight grandpa.

"Could you please press floor 10?" I ask politely since he's standing in front of the whole fucking button panel.

"Sure," he grunts and presses the button marked with a 10. When he turns back around his fat butt hits all of the buttons and they all light up. _You've got to be kidding me._

I look over at Aria and her mouth is slightly open. She gives me a look that says 'is he fucking serious?!'

She puts her face in her hands and raises her eyebrows at the man.

"Sir, I believe you just pushed all of the buttons," Aria says as calmly as she can. We stop on the second floor and the doors open on cue.

"No… I only pressed 10 and 9," he says with furrowed eyebrows. The doors close.

"Right, you only pressed 9 and 10 with your _finger_," she says pointedly and I bite my tongue to keep from smiling. He still looks confused. "You pressed all of the others with your…"

"Fat ass," I cough suggestively and Aria grins.

"… hiney," she finishes and I snort loudly. I turn my head so he won't see me cracking up even though it's probably too late. The doors open as we stop on the third floor.

The man turns around slowly and finally understands what she's getting at. "Oh… sorry about that. Well, we might as well get to know each other!"

Our eyes widen and Aria gives me another look. "We're getting off at the next floor," she whispers in my ear and I nod frantically.

"So how long have you two been dating?" he asks.

"We're not-" I start.

"-dating. We got married 2 months ago," Aria butts in and smiles a little too sweetly. I raise my eyebrows and let out a loud laugh.

"Oh… aren't you a little young to be mar-" he starts to question but we bolt out of the elevator onto the fourth floor and sprint down the hall to the stairs.

We're both doubled over laughing and Aria is still giggling when we push into her penthouse. We collapse onto her bed and she gets out her laptop. I scroll through Twitter and tweet about our fun night.

**Aria's POV:**

I pull up Vannesa's profile and see that there's nothing of importance really… she lives in DC also though which is a weird coincidence. There's a picture of her and she's really pretty. I close the window and pout in jealousy. I randomly click on my calendar and I notice there's a note on today's date: **Mom's anniversary.**

My eyes start to fill with tears. I can't believe I forgot. This isn't some happy wedding anniversary… two years ago my mom went on a very dangerous assignment. She never came back. I never even got to see her body. My family was told that member of a rival agency murdered her because she wouldn't give up any information on our agency.

I sob involuntarily and Niall has me in his arms almost immediately. He rocks me back and forth and kisses my head until the sobs subside into sniffles.

"Wanna talk?" he says quietly obviously caring about me.

"My mom died… it's the anniversary of her death. She was murdered Niall," I try not to burst into tears again.

"I'm so so sorry, Aria…"

I sniffle, "It's ok… what's done is done, I suppose. I just miss her I guess. After she died was when my dad went insane. I don't know why, but he was always paranoid that someone was looking for him after that. They divorced earlier that month so they hadn't really been keeping in touch but he was so messed up when she passed…"

Niall seems to ponder this because he doesn't respond. I doze off in his embrace but wake up from his movement at around midnight.

"Wherareyougoin?" I slur together sleepily.

"I'm going to go back to my place now. Sorry, didn't mean to wake you," Niall whispers back. I sit up and rub my eyes.

"Please stay, Niall?" I say more as a question. "I don't want to be alone tonight…"

He lets out a breath that almost sounds like relief and he lies back down under the covers, "Of course."

I snuggle under the covers close to him and fall asleep with my head on his chest and his arms holding me safely. I am woken up nearly 5 hours later by voices downstairs. Wait- voices downstairs?!

**Harry's POV:  
10pm- Royalty Suites gym**

I finish yet another rep of weight lifting and move on to ab workouts. I've been blowing off steam in the gym for at least 45 minutes by now. I went out to dinner- by myself- and then came back and worked out- also by myself. Niall and Aria went out together so I guess Aria and I aren't an 'item' anymore. We still needed to talk but for now I needed to cool off.

I'm mad at myself more than anyone else though. A little angry at Aria kissing Niall and vice versa. Also at Louis for bringing it up. If he hadn't then maybe I could've gotten away with it… but in a way it's a relief to have the truth taken off of my shoulders.

At around 4:30am I slow down on the treadmill and step off. My whole body trembles with exhaustion and I gulp down some water. I take off my t-shirt to wipe off some of the sweat and head up to our penthouse. I shower and end up using the rest of the shampoo in the tiny hotel bottles. I pull on some sweats and just go down to the lobby without a shirt on.

**Vannesa's POV:  
4:40am, London Time (11:40pm EST time)**

My flight landed early so it's exactly 11:40pm when my cab pulls up to Royalty Suites. I nod in approval at the ritzy interior as I enter, dragging my two bags behind me. Then a shirtless boy catches my eye. _He might be the finest thing in here…_

I flip my hair and decide I look pretty good for just getting off of an eight hour flight. I straighten out my back and walk over to the desk where the young man is talking to a lady behind the counter.

"Do you happen to have any extra shampoo? I'm afraid I used the rest in my room and the rest of the lads will be angry if they find out there's no shampoo tomorrow morning," his sexy smooth voice explains to the clerk. _There's other 'lads' in his room? Oh _hailll _yes. COME TO VANNESA, BABIES!_

He glances over and seems to notice me for the first time after the lady goes to get some more shampoo I assume. I can feel his eyes traveling up and down my body but I pretend not to notice as I bite my lip and tap my foot impatiently.

"Do you need help with anything, love?" his crisp British accent is directed at me. _HOLY SHIT HE CALLED ME 'LOVE'!_

I look up and meet his sparkling green eyes with my blue ones. His curls are still damp from his shower and he has an irresistible upper body. He looks kind of familiar… I shake my head to wake myself from the trance and reply in a puzzled voice, "Do you happen to know what floor room 499 is on?"

His eyebrows shoot up and narrows his eyes suspiciously, "It can't be… someone is staying there already."

I note his body language. _How well does he know them…?_

"Oh it is? Sorry, I must be mistaken then…" I say and pull out a random paper from my purse. I pretend that it's a reservation, "Oh, my bad. I'm in room 498."

"Oh… well its floor 10. I'm staying on that floor, too so we can go up together if you want?" he relaxes and winks at me.

"That would be brilliant."

After I get my room key and he gets his shampoo we go on the elevator together.

"So what's your name?" I ask him while putting my hair up in a messy bun.

"Harry Styles. What's yours?"

"Vannesa," I say with a smile.

"So Vannesa… what brings you here from the US?"

We make small talk until we reach room 498. _Shit… now what? _He saves me.

"Well do you want to maybe still talk? I'm not tired and I'm sure you're starving by now," Harry offers.

I'm so caught up in our conversation and his gorgeous eyes that I don't even realize whose room we are in until a girl around my age steps into the kitchen and looks at me in shock.

**Aria's POV:**

I look over and see that Niall is still asleep next to me. _Who the fuck is in my kitchen at 5am?!_

"Niall, wake up," I say softly shaking his shoulder gently.

"Is it time for breakfast?" he sits up immediately.

"No! There are people in the fucking kitchen and its 4:49am!"

His eyes widen and he starts to get up. We're both still fully dressed and I probably look like shit but whatevs. Niall follows me out of the bedroom and we move silently down from the loft. I can see the back of Harry's head and some… girl?! Why are they in my kitchen?!

I flick on all of the lights and march in. Then I freeze as soon as I see her face.

"Vannesa…?" I ask unsure. I've only seen a couple of photos of her before and it's like the crack of dawn.

"How do you know me?" she asks.

"I'm Aria… we're sis-"

I'm cut off by her hair in my face (which smells really good FYI) and a tight hug that nearly lifts me off the ground. I laugh and hug her back.

"We need to talk girl! There's so much we need to straighten out, seriously. Our dad is so fucked up!" she exclaims while shaking her head.

"You have no idea! Try living with him for nearly your whole life! Hey, how'd you find me?"

"Oh…" she glances at the boys and whispers in my ear, "I attend SET Academy… from what your brother told me it seems like we are very similar."

"Holy shit! You're a spy, too?!" I blurt loudly and her eyes grow with fear. "Oh don't worry, they all know."

"Who exactly are _they_?"

"Us, and 3 other lads… we're in a band called One Direction," Harry speaks up and I make eye contact with him for the first time. I glance away and focus back on Vannesa.

"OH! I thought I recognized you from somewhere! I love your song… what is it? Something about what makes you beautiful?" she asks.

"Yeah, that's the one. Alright well it's really late- well early so Imma get back to bed. Do you have a place to crash?"

"Yep! I'm next door, 498. I'll come over tomorrow morning. Night, everyone!" Vannesa says before picking up her bags and heading out.

"Night, Harry…" I say pointedly and Harry ducks his head.

"Aria, can we talk?"

"Yeah… tomorrow," I say tiredly. He nods and leaves.

Niall scoops me up bridal style and carries me back upstairs and I fall asleep within a minute.

**Harry's POV:**

Aria is obviously still mad at me… but for some reason I don't even care as much anymore. Sure, we should still talk things out but I think I've moved on. Well, moved on to Vannesa anyways.


	28. Chapter 26- Falling for you like Snow

**hey guyss! should I continue? I really dont know since i dont get many reviews at all :/ please leave some feedback? let me know if I should keep writing this! xx**

**Niall's POV:  
January 23****rd****, 2012- 8:17am**

I roll over and check the digital clock on Aria's bedside table. Ugh. Better get up… we have a signing today at 10am to 12pm. I move Aria's head off of my chest as gently as I can but she stirs anyways and opens one eye sleepily.

"G'morning, Aria!" I say cheerfully and she rubs her eyes.

"Top o' the mornin' to ya!" Aria says with a surprisingly good Irish accent.

I pout, "We don't actually say that ya know…"

"Sure you don't," she smirks and swings her legs over the other side of the bed. "Are we doing anything today?"

"Yeah. A signing from 10 'til noon. You comin'?"

"I'm pretty sure I have to… there could be assassins," she waggles her eyebrows and fails to keep a serious expression.

"Orrrr maybe just paps," I chuckle.

"Or paparazzi assassins! That'd actually be a pretty good cover… I'll keep that in mind later!" Aria exclaims while getting to her feet and stretching. "I have to shower and get ready and you should probably freshen up as well."

"Alri, I'm on it. I'll bring the other lads over at 9:15?"

"Sounds good! See ya, babe!" she chirps and places a soft kiss on my cheek. Then she waltzes over to the bathroom and winks before shutting the door. _Dayyum. Is she messing with me, or what?_

**Vannesa's POV:  
about 8:30am**

I squint my eyes at the bright rays of sunlight leaking through the blinds. I groan and throw off all the covers. I didn't even change last night. _Woah! Last night… I met my fucking sister! Holllaaa!_

I skip to the bathroom and take a hot shower all the while humming to various songs by the amazing Jesse McCartney. After I get out and dry off I get dressed in a cute outfit. ( cgi/set?id=59612871)

I blow dry my hair and apply a thin layer of mascara and eyeliner and a sheer shade of pink lip gloss. I blow myself a kiss in the mirror and grab my purse.

I walk precisely 6 steps down the hall and knock on Aria's door. 14 seconds later the door swings open and she greets me with a hug.

"Ok, girl. You need to tell me _everything_," Aria says with wide eyes as we jump onto the couch in her living room.

I sit criss-cross-applesauce and tell her everything from my mom avoiding the topic of my/our father to his visit only two days ago.

"Wait, so he just _showed up_, at _your house_, _piss drunk_, and tells you that he _hooked up with your mom_?" Aria emphasizes nearly the whole sentence.

"Yup! And he didn't even bring me any birthday presents to compensate for all those years he missed!" I joke with mock seriousness.

"What a douche. Sorry, sis! He isn't exactly known for his nice side… if he even still has one! I just can't believe he cheated on my mom… she must've found out! Because they never really told me why they were getting a divorce… it just kinda happened. That was like a week or so before she died… it all happened so fast," Aria sighs. "Apparently he's in LA now stalking our bro though… better keep a good eye on him. He isn't exactly stable… as you could probably have guessed from your first encounter."

"I gotcha. So we should keep checking up on Michael?" I ask actually kind of concerned about this lunatic I call my father.

"Definitely. Last time I heard about him was from the police department in New York. He got in a bar fight and killed the bartender… because apparently she looked similar to my mom," Aria shakes her head as if still in disbelief.

"Damn. Someone's on drugs…"

"You can say that again."

"Damn! Someone's on drugs!" I repeat and we both laugh.

**Vannesa's POV:  
At the One Direction signing; about 11:45am**

Bloody screaming rings in my ears. _THESE FUCKING CRAZY FANGIRLS WILL BE THE DEAF OF ME. Hah, see what I did there? ;)_

I'm messing around on my phone at the end of the table next to Harry when an obnoxious voice disturbs me. Sounds like a freaking chipmunk on crack.

"And who the hell are you?" it haunts me and I scoff without looking up.

"I _will _be your worst nightmare if you don't buzz off," I snap and glance her way.

Some snotty slut who looks to be about 13 years old. She looks over at Harry for support but he's too busy trying to stifle his laughter. She puts a hand on her hip and purses her lips.

"Yeah, right." _This bitch is just looking for drama. Haiilll no I am _not _giving her what she wants._

"Yep! Bye now!" I chirp cheerfully and wink at her. _Stupid girl._

She reaches forward and tries to grab my phone or something but I react way faster and knock her hand away. I grab her wrist and twist it behind her back.

She yelps in pain, "Lettt meee goooo!"

"I am a black belt in karate, missy. Go back to stalking One Direction on your computer and kissing your posters," I lie although I could be a black belt without a doubt.

She yanks her arm out of my grasp and struts away with red cheeks. Scattered clapping rises from some of the fans and I curtsy with a grin on my face.

"You told her!" Harry bursts out laughing. I giggle and bob my head back and forth with mock attitude.

**Aria's POV:**

After my sister tells some crazy fan off, there are just about 30 girls left waiting in line. I notice Lisbeth walk into the small building and make a beeline for the table.

"Heyyy, girl! School let out early because it's supposed to start snowing soon so I decided I'd join you guys!" Lizzie says happily.

Liam glances over and his face brightens at the sight of her. He beckons her over and I wink at Lisbeth. She slaps me playfully and heads over to Liam. I turn to Niall who is sitting on my right.

"Liam really likes her, huh?" I say quietly as he accepts a cupcake from a fan and signs another copy of their album.

"He doesn't stop talking about her. And I'm pretty sure he never stops thinking about her either," Niall shakes his head with a small smile. "I guess that's what it's like to be in love."

**Liam's POV:  
As soon as the signing is over- 12:23pm**

"Do you want to grab something to eat then go to the cinema early?" I ask Lisbeth anxiously. She is dressed nice already so we can go to dinner right after.( cgi/set?id=59615550)

"Sure thing, babe! Did you drive here?" she says happily and I let out a breath I'd been holding subconsciously.

"Yeah, so I can drive us. You look absolutely stunning by the way, love."

She blushes, "Lookin' fine yourself, Liam. You ready to get out of here?"

"Never been more ready in my life!" _Lie. I'm about to pee my pants I'm so worried I'll screw up this date._

**Lisbeth's POV:  
4:20pm  
In a move theater watching HATES (House At The End of the Street)**

This movie is so fucking scary, I'm not even joking. I think there's only about 20 minutes left (THANK GOD) but I've been clinging onto Liam's arm the entire time! We stopped at Nando's for lunch and just him being there made it seem like a perfect date even though it smelled like grease and kids were running around yelling.

As another scary part of the movie **(A/N sorry I've never seen the movie so idk what happens in it! :P) **unfolds I jump in surprise and bury my face in Liam's jacket. I breathe in the clean scent of his cologne **(A/N LISBETH! Have a specific way you want LiLi to smell? Lol I have a very difficult describing the smell of guys.. help?) **and immediately calm down.

He puts his arm around me and pulls me in close. We cuddle like this until the movie is over and the lights slowly brighten in the theater.

"Remind me again _why _exactly we watched that movie?" I exclaim with wide eyes. "I'm going to have nightmares!"

He laughs and says cheekily, "Would it help if you had someone to spend the night with?"

_Naughty, naughty, Liam! Who would've guessed…  
(_ _ upload/198580664790644133_DZCA3yKv_ )_

"Oh, you wish," I giggle and link my arm through his. Then I whisper in his ear, "Maybe, if you're lucky."

Liam blushes (_awww! Adorbs :) _and we walk out to his car. Paparazzi are going crazy already but I don't think anyone could ruin this day for me. I get into the passenger side and we sing loudly to the radio the whole way to the restaurant. At one point I just stop because he's making my voice sound like shit. _Stupid angel boy._

At around 4:30 we pull into the parking lot of a huge fancy looking restaurant.

"Liam!" I gasp. "I can't go in wearing this!"

He gives me the 'what the hell is wrong with you' look and says, "Why not? I think you're dressed perfectly for the occasion."

I scoff, "Boys…" _Boys will be boys… even if it is Liam Payne._

He pouts and I crack a smile. Liam takes my hand in his warm one and we are seated at a table for two lit by candlelight. It's at a window looking over the river and it's absolutely beautiful.

"Liam… this is perfect," I whisper gratefully and he places his hand over mine.

"And you deserve every second of it," Liam smiles warmly.

We order our food and talk leisurely like we'd known each other for years. At some point near the end it really hits me. _I am _in love _with Liam. I love him._

After Liam pays for our (rather expensive) meal like any real gentleman would, we leave the posh restaurant hand in hand. Cameras flash around us as I lean my head on his shoulder and he smiles at me happily. Snowflakes drift lazily down and melt on his tongue when he sticks it out childishly. I join in and we are giggling like madly in love teenagers. _Which we kind of are… well I am :P_

On the slow ride back (he was very cautious of the snowy roads), Liam tells me about his life on the move; the boys seem to always be traveling or going to some promo event. I tell him all about my life since my brother died, and even a bit about it before then.

The road back to my dorm is jammed with hundreds of cars- the radio is reporting a fatal car accident. The snow is falling faster and harder and I begin to get nervous. _It could be midnight before we make it! If we do…_

"Hey, Lisbeth… I was thinking that maybe we should just go back to the hotel. It's only a few kilometers away and there's less traffic. We can wait out the storm there or you can stay the night if you'd like," Liam offers worriedly.

"That sounds great!" I say with an exhale of relief. _Avoid the traffic, danger of getting in an accident, AND I get to spend the night with _Liam Payne_! Score for Lisbeth._

Soon we are pulling into the parking garage next to Harry's Audi and he turns off the ignition. I turn to face him.

"Liam, that was absolutely incredible. I can't even begin to describe…" I trail off nervously. "Thank you so much; maybe we can do it again?"

"Definitely. And it was all my pleasure, love," he pauses and looks me in the eye. I stare into his warm chocolate brown irises and feel safe. Like nothing could ever hurt me as long as I have him… Liam cups my face in his hands gently. "Lisbeth… I know we just met but I feel like I've known you forever. And I feel like this is right, like maybe it's meant to be, but is it just me?"

I answer him by smiling widely and leaning in closer. We both close our eyes and the outside world disappears. All I'm aware of his minty breath on my cheek, then soft lips closing the distance between us. Liam kisses me gently and I respond eagerly, allowing his tongue to slip inside my mouth. The kiss deepens and becomes more passionate-

A dark blur goes past the window then- BAM!


	29. Chapter 27- Buttdialed

**Harry's POV:  
About 12:30pm, after the signing ends**

After the signing is over, we all go to McDonald's for lunch. _Livin' the high life as One Direction right here_, I think as I order a burger with large fries. I'm the last one to order my food and by the time I pick up my meal, everyone is already seated. Vannesa is just ahead of me but there aren't any seats left with Aria and the rest of the lads (minus Liam and Lizzie of course).

"Hey, Vannesa, mind if I sit with you?" I say huskily and she whips around to face me. I can't help but notice how flawless she is. Her hair falls in perfect soft curls around her face and her eyes sparkle brightly.

"Oh, yeah, sure!" she says with a look of relief. "Remind me again why we are eating here when we could be dining at Babylon at the Roof Gardens?"

**(A/N OMG. Look at this place. ** . /venue/kensington/babylon_at_the_roof_gardens_w8 **)**

"YOLO!" I say grinning. Vannesa rolls her eyes.

"Precisely why we should be there instead of here."

I pause to think, "Oh… true. Well it's about the people and memories we make, yeah?"

She smiles, "For sure… So what's it like being famous and all?"

"It has its advantages. World travel, pays well, people appreciate and support us… and we get to meet lovely girls along the way," I wink at her. She remains unfazed and clears her throat.

"How flattering. And I suppose that you tell all the girls that?"

"Only the especially beautiful and interesting ones," I say and she raises an eyebrow.

Aria, Niall, Zayn, and Louis get up and walk over to our table.

"It's just starting to snow so I think we should head back to the hotel before the roads become a mess," Aria tells us and Vannesa and I look out the window.

Sure enough, fat snowflakes are drifting down heavily and the sky is getting darker with more clouds. I nod and throw out mine and Vannesa's trash.

"Thanks," Vannesa says and I flash her a smile. She looks away but I can see the corners of her mouth tugging up.

When we got back to the hotel we all grabbed some gloves and hats. It's time to go to war.

**Aria's POV:**

These boys don't know what they're getting into. A snowball fight with two top secret agents? Uhhhmm, yeah. We're gonna kick some ass. Vannesa and I grab gloves for ourselves and I change into a pair of jeans and my Uggs. We pick out some gadgets to make this fight a little more interesting.

"Are we playing teams?" I ask Vannesa while putting some remote triggered firecrackers in a small backpack (yes, I said remote triggered firecrackers. Not sure what the purpose of them is though... Probably not for snowball fights).

Vannesa laughs a little, "I think we're gonna have to. I mean if it was everyone for themselves then we could probably take them all out in less than a minute!"

I laugh and nod in agreement. "Well, teams it is then! I have to warn you though, Tommo is a good competitor. Watch out for him."

"Got it. Stripes is tricky. Anything else?"

"Niall will probably want to stop because he's hungry, Zayn will cry if you mess up his hair and Harry... Will most likely work with Lou, even if they're on different teams."

Vannesa giggles, "Traitor alert! Hey is there something up between you and Harry?"

I raise my eyebrow.

"Imma spy. I can read body language," Vannesa states.

"Touche. Uhhh... Yeah. It's complicated. We officially we're dating but then I told him about my... Occupation. And he got mad, hooked up with some cougar, and didn't tell me until after I felt totally guilty and confessed mine and Niall's kiss," I word vomit.

Vannesa is staring at me with her mouth slightly open. "Oh. Wow, you've certainly had a crazy time."

"And that's only part of it…"

***25 minutes later***

The walk here consisted of Louis repeatedly singing the one verse from 'Some Nights': _This is it boys, this is war! What we've been waiting for. Why can't we break the rules already?_, Niall complaining about his hunger, Zayn obsessing over his quiff, Harry not-so-subtly checking Vannesa out, and Vannesa and me trying to keep them from wandering onto the snow covered road.

Now finally, Niall, Louis and I crouch behind a snow barricade we built in the deserted park. Vannesa, Zayn and Harry are behind theirs which is approximately 40 feet away. Vannesa and I decided to split up in order to make it fairer.

"READY! SET! … GO!" Louis yells and jumps in front with his arms full of at least 10 snowballs.

"Distract them!" I tell Lou and Niall as we move out.

"What the hell are you doing?" Niall asks.

"That's for me to know, and you to find out later," I whisper back with a smirk.

As they start to pelt snowballs at the other team, I bury the firecrackers in random spots. Vannesa narrows her eyes at me and I grin mischievously in reply. She turns her attention back to Louis who has attempted to throw himself over their barricade and lands on Harry. Niall just laughs and is pretty much no help. I pack some snow together and send it spiraling towards Vannesa. She catches it right before it comes in contact with her head with one swift movement.

"Retreat! RETREAT!" Louis screams as he scrambles away and I sprint back to our side laughing.

Vannesa does some cool gymnastics floor routine to skillfully dodge the mines I planted but Harry and Zayn just lumber behind her. She opens her mouth to warn them after completing an aerial but it's too late.

I press the red button on my remote and the snow blows upwards with a small explosion. Harry and Zayn dive to the ground covering their heads and Vannesa just doubles over with laughter. Harry sits up first with a horrified expression.

Zayn finds his voice first, "What the fuck was that?!"

"That was the sound of victory, Zayn. Do you hear it?"

"Well my ears are ringing if that's what you mean," Harry speaks up with wide eyes.

We all laugh and it turns into a free for all. Niall tackles Louis and starts shoving snow down his jacket. I observe happily until Harry comes over to me.

"We should talk now…"

I nod and we walk to the edge of the park. I brush the layer of snow on the bench off and sit down. Harry sits beside me and we watch the snowball fight for a moment before he breaks the silence.

"It wasn't all bad, ya know," he says softly.

I smile a little, "I never said it was."

Harry snorts quietly, "Things just didn't work out… how they should've. I'm sorry if I ever hurt you. I genuinely mean that."

I look into his deep green eyes and nod in agreement, "Right back at ya."

"I see the way Ni-"

"You were my first kiss, Harry. That's why I was so upset when you kissed me on the red bus the day we filmed Gotta Be You," I blurt suddenly. I bite my lip and look away, immediately regretting telling him.

"What?"

"I had never been kissed before…"

Harry looks at me with wide eyes and pulls me in for a hug, "I had no idea… I didn't realize that the agency was _that_ strict. I'm sorry, I should've thought ahead, I just… I _really_ liked you-"

He apologizes but I cut him off, "Its fine, Harry. Really, it is. I don't even… really know… why. Why I was upset. I think maybe it was because I thought I couldn't have you; and that it was all just a tease-"

This time it's Harry who interrupts. But with a kiss.

_Whatthefuckholyfuckityfuckfu ckfuckwhyfuck._

I'm scared at first that he'll lips make me fall all over again but instead the kiss is filled with something else. There's no lust… just… something else. Maybe like remorse; it felt like a goodbye. We pull back slowly and I meet Harry's gaze. **(A/N MUAHAHAHA! What, did you think they were getting back together? ;) 'weeeee are never ever ever, getting back togetherrrr'-Taytay Swift)**

"Did you feel anything?" he asks hesitantly.

I shake my head no.

"You?" I whisper.

"Nah… but I had a nice time when things were good. Friends?"

"Fo show!" we both smile. "Thanks, Harry. For everything. I have this feeling that things are gonna work out between you and Vannesa. And secret agents' gut feelings are usually pretttty accurate," I wink and skip off to join the rest of the peoples.

**Harry's POV:**

"Fo show!" she exclaims and I smile.

"Thanks, Harry. For everything. I have this feeling that things are gonna work out between you and Vannesa. And secret agents' gut feelings are usually pretttty accurate," Aria winks and skips off leaving me gaping after her.

_Is it that obvious?_

I trudge through the snow that is steadily building up back to the battle ground. Niall and Vannesa are chatting while making snow angels and I feel a pang of jealousy. I walk up and they sit up as Aria asks them where Lou and Zayn went.

"I actually have no idea… they went in the direction of the hotel," Vannesa shrugs obviously not worried at all.

"It was pretty sketchy, really… Louis snuck off and he had something in his jacket pocket. Zayn was like snickering behind him…" Niall recalls.

Aria narrows her eyes in suspicion. She looks at Vannesa, "When is 'Lisam' getting back?"

Vannesa is puzzled for a split second before her eyes get big, "Shit! Lizzie's going to be pissed!"

"What? Oi, what's going on?"

**Louis' POV:**

Using my fabulous and all natural ninja talent, I sneak away from Vannesa and Niall with Zayn. I have precisely three snowballs in my pocket and they shall not go to waste. We snicker mischievously as we quickly make our way to the hotel's parking garage. The plan was to wait behind Harry's car until Liam and Lizzie got back and then to ambush them.

"Isn't that Liam's car?" Zayn hisses right before we enter the parking deck.

"Shit!" I dive into some bushes beside the sidewalk and I hear Zayn swear behind me.

"Ok, leggo!" I whisper and we sprint up to Liam's now parked car.

I run past the passenger side and chuck a snowball at the windshield.

**Lisbeth's POV:**

_DAFUQ! I WILL KILL THOSE BOYS._

Liam and I jerk out of what _was_ the perfect kiss and I fling my door open. It hits Zayn's ass and he flies forward into Louis. Louis scrambles to get up and I chase him out of the garage. I catch up as we come to a snow bank and tackle him into it.

Lou screams like a little girl as I put snow into his ears and down his neck, "What the hell, Louis?!"

"What can I say?" Louis shrugs while grinning.

"Fuck you, Tommo!" I laugh. "But seriously, you'd better fear for your dignity when you get back from your next date."

"Ok! Ok! I get the idea. Hey, anything new on that girl Madison?" he changes the subject.

"Nope. I hope that we never hear anything from her again. If we do… it'll be worse than a world without carrots."

Louis gasps in horror, "What could be worse than that?!"

We laugh and meet up with Zayn and Liam before heading to a park where apparently everyone else is. I deliver a slap to Zayn's pretty face and earn a sweet forehead kiss from Liam. He holds my hand and I lean on him. Liam makes me feel safe and secure; like everything is perfect.

**Niall's POV:**

The girls explain their theory of where Zayn and Louis went. I don't know Lizzie too well, but I know her well enough to know that she is not going to let this slide. It's all about R-E-V-E-N-G-E. And the whole Madison prank was just a small taste of what she could probably do. Louis better be scared for his life.

"So are we gonna stop 'em then?" I ask wearily.

"Nahhh. They'll come back eventually," Vannesa waves it off and Aria snorts.

"Whether or not the prankers will still be alive… well I guess we shall wait and see," Aria shakes her head with a small smile.

"Bloody hell, you agents really get into it, yeah?" Harry says still shocked over the firecracker stunt.

We all chuckle as Liam, Lisbeth, Zayn and a snowy Louis walk up. Liam and Lisbeth are holding hands and looking at each other lovingly. It makes me a bit jealous; they were in love at first sight and everything worked perfectly from there. I don't know if Aria is ready to move on over Harry yet… and even though I _know_ that I love her, I need to give her space and time to sort her feelings out.

"What happened to you, mate?" Harry laughs at Louis as he tries to shake some snow out of his jacket.

"Lisbeth happened. I think that she's already promised to herself that she'd get revenge on me…" Louis says with a crooked smile.

"You'd better watch your ass!" I laugh and he nods fearfully.

**About 7pm**

We head back to our hotel rooms and change into dry warm clothes before meeting up in Aria's room. Lisbeth is staying at the hotel overnight because the roads are getting dangerous.

The girls are all drinking steaming hot chocolate in the kitchen when we let ourselves in using the key we plan on never returning. Aria is wearing a turquoise dress with leggings and a black leather jacket ( aria_chapter_27/set?id=59862500 ) and Vannesa has on some stressed jeans with a light blue top and brown jacket ( vanessa_chapter_27/set?id=59861404#stream_box ). Lisbeth is wearing her outfit from earlier still since she wasn't involved in our snowball fight.

"So… that hot cocoa you've got… looks really-" I start to hint with a smile.

"You're very welcome," Aria chuckles as she slides 5 mugs towards us.

"Thank you, love!" I gratefully take the drink and let the hot liquid slide down my throat, warming my stomach.

At some point Liam and Lisbeth sneak off to cuddle on the couch, Louis and Zayn go off to play video games, and Harry and Vannesa are engaged in what seems to be a personal conversation. Aria takes our empty cups and places them in the sink.

"Wanna go for a walk?" I ask shyly.

"Sure thing, babe!" she replies in an American accent. "Shit, hang on this'll just take a mo-"

"No! I mean, I think you should just leave it. We'll only be out for a few and I think most of the paps have gone home," I blurt. _American accents .sexy._

"Uhm, ok. Let me grab my shoes, then."

Soon we are out on the streetlight-lit roads of London as snow falls slowly from the fading clouds. It isn't snowing nearly as hard as before, but there is at least 15 centimeters **(that's about 6 inches, Americans ;) **on the ground already.

Aria shivers and I pull her in close to my body.

**Aria's POV:**

I shudder involuntarily as the cold seeps through my leggings and Niall graciously pulls me in towards his hot body. _Literally and figuratively._

"Do you want to stop at this bakery?" Niall asks and his stomach growls as if on cue. He blushes slightly.

I giggle and nod, "Sure."

Niall buys a small loaf of frosted pumpkin bread that is still warm from the oven. It's about 7:35pm and almost completely dark so we just eat the bread on the way home.

"You and Harry talked today, yeah?" Niall asks carefully.

"Yep. Everything's cool. I know he's already moved on… I'm pretty sure he's got something for Vannesa," I explain.

"What about you?" he says studying my face. I look blankly back. "Have you moved on?"

"Oh! I'm not really sure. I think so. I mean, I forgive him for that horrible... deed. And so now we're just friends. If you're asking if I'm ready to date someone else, then the answer is probably not. Even if I was, what do I tell the agency? They'll probably be really upset that Harry and I broke up in the first place; if they find out I'm dating someone else they'll know that it's for real."

"I get you. I'm sorry… I wish that things would work out easier. But I guess this is life," Niall sighs and kisses the top of my head.

I lean into his shoulder and he puts his arm around my shoulders protectively.

"Why did you want me to keep the translator out?" I ask suddenly curious.

Niall laughs softly and looks away. I can't really tell in the dark, but I think he blushes.

"Because American accents are damn sexy," he says in a joking tone but I pick up a ring of truth to it.

I laugh and roll my eyes, "You're so cute."

Niall is about to say something back but my phone starts buzzing. _Oh, God. Please don't let it be the fire station saying that Louis has burned down the hotel…_

**Incoming call: Michael :)**

I raise my eyebrows in surprise and answer the call. 'My brother' I mouth to Niall and he nods.

"Hey, Mike. What's up?" I say. Static and some scuffling fills my ear. I roll my eyes and tell Niall, "Buttdial."

I almost hang up when what sounds like a groan comes through. Some scuffling then a bang, like something hitting the wall.

"Michael? Is everything ok?" I say more desperately.

Then, even though it's muffled, I hear the unmistakable voice of my father. _Oh shit._

_**THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEARING WITH ME! Schoool has caught up with me :((( boo! But anyways your reviews are so amazingggg like I love all of you to death:**  
_

_**Madeline: omg are you serious? ahhhh thankyouthankyouthankyou! thats so cool! you just made my day girl. :D xx  
Jocelyn: ASDFGHJKLLL;thats sayin a lot! cuz there r so many amazing stories i thought mine was like bird turds compared to theirs lol :P THANK YOU I LOVE YOU OK xx  
Bianca: hihi gurlll :D im so glad you like it! i will3 x  
my lovely "guest": idk if you are the same person but! lol thanks for the motivation *sarcasm*. but really :D haha x  
**__**and Tobeornottobe1: thank you so freakin much! the feedback was awesome btw :) xx**_

_**So review this maybe? I'd love to hear from EVERYONE reading this because y'all are freakin epic yo :D (got that from 'guest' haha) kkbyeloveyou3**_


	30. Chapter 28- Back to the States

**Liam's POV:  
7:41pm, still January 23****rd****, Friday**

"So are you staying here tonight?" I ask Lisbeth while brushing some hair out of her face.

She looks up with sparkling eyes, "Yeah, I think I'll just crash with Aria if that's ok with you?"

"Of course, love!" I say hiding the disappointment as best I can. _Geez Liam you only met yesterday, don't get so hasty. She's not even officially your girlfriend… yet. _I reprimand myself internally.

"I'm so glad you almost got hit by that car, Liam…" Lizzie murmurs and I look at her in shock.

"What? Why?" I say flabbergasted.

"Because otherwise I probably would've never met you! There was no chance of you dying anyways, as long as I was there to play hero," she smirks playfully.

I nudge her teasingly, "Well thank the Lord that Lisbeth the Great has my back now!"

Lisbeth giggles and I kiss her softly on the lips.

"Oi! Get a room you lovers you!" Louis yells in mock disgust just as Lisbeth's phone starts to ring.

**Lisbeth's POV:**

After Louis interrupts yet another intimate moment, my phone starts to go off.

**Incoming call: Aria mah main nig ;)**

I scrunch my eyebrows up in confusion. _Is everything ok?_

"Hey, are you alright?" I say quickly.

"I got a call. Well a buttdial… it was Michael. But all I heard was fighting…" Aria says in a hushed voice.

"And…?" I prompt her.

"And my dad's voice."

"Shit. How close are you?" _Aria needs to get to the States before it's too late._

"5, tops. I don't even give a fuck what the agency says, I'm flying back to Cali ASAP," Aria says.

"Aight, girl. I'm coming with you though, and I know that Vannesa won't stand for if she's left behind either," I say glancing over at Vannesa and Harry in the kitchen.

"What you talkin' bout?" Vannesa whips around to face me at the mention of her name. I hold up a finger to signal for her to wait.

"Mkay we'll figure this out later. I'm so scared for him though. Text Mol, yeah?" Aria asks.

"I gotchu girl. Hurry back… I have this bad gut feeling," I warn her.

Aria blows out air in distress and replies, "Ok, thanks, babe. See you soon."

The line clicks. I look up to see all the guys and Vannesa staring at me anxiously. I inhale shakily.

"Your dad found Michael," I direct towards Vannesa. Her eyes widen and she clenches her fists.

"That fucking son of a bitch better watch himself cause I am coming without an ounce of mercy for his poor fat ass-" I interrupt her rant.

"Lads, we're gonna havta get the hell over to Cali… so I don't even know what you're going to do."

"Our tour starts on the 31st anyways in L.A. That's only 7 days away; we could go early. Besides the VMA's are the 29th and we have to attend those as well," Liam speaks up. **(A/N I know that the VMA's were actually in September but let's just go along with this for the story ;P)**

"I'll call Paul right now." Zayn volunteers. We're all silent as he waits for Paul to pick up. "It went straight to voicemail… weird. I wonder where he is now; he's been rather distant lately."

"Probably doesn't want to get involved in all this agency shit." Louis suggests blatantly.

"Touche," I say with a shrug. "That's partly why I left the agency anyways."

**To: Molly my bestest biatch ever(;  
hey Mol its Lisbeth :) long story short, ran into aria here in london. But aria just got a buttdial. Her dad found mike ! getting the soonest flite outta here. Idek if the agency is aware**

I send a quick message to Molly and Liam rubs my shoulder comfortingly. _Why can't we have just one moment of peace?_

**Aria's POV:**

I end the call with Lisbeth and sigh shakily.

"Pumpkin bread?" Niall offers. I shake my head no and he shrugs as he finishes off what's left of the loaf.

Suddenly I trip over something on the sidewalk hidden by the snow. I do a somersault but without letting my head touch the snow. My shoes aren't so lucky. The heel on my right boot is broken.

I laugh in spite of myself and Niall raises his eyebrows at me. "What's next?" I ask exasperatedly while balancing on my good leg.

Niall chuckles and sweeps me off my feet.

"This," he whispers with his forehead pressed onto mine. I wrap my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck and smile.

I take in everything and try to etch it in my brain to keep forever. The dim streetlamp highlighting the falling snow. Our shadow on the sidewalk. The snowflakes dusted on Niall's blonde hair. His eyes; his dazzling ice blue eyes. Pink lips, rosy cheeks from the cold, his strong arms holding me up. The sound of traffic in the distance and the icy wind blowing loosely through my hair.

I close my eyes and feel his warm breath on my jaw line. The scent of the bakery lingers on his sweatshirt and calms me down. His lips brush against mine ever so softly and I bring his face to mine to close the distance. And in this moment everything feels perfect. Nothing is wrong; it's just me and Niall and the snow.

Except for it's not perfect. Nothing is right; and it's me and Niall against the world.

**Niall's POV:**

We kiss sweetly before she pulls out reluctantly.

"So you're not ready to love again, eh?" I tease Aria.

She pouts and mutters, "Irresistible Irish."

I chuckle when she suddenly shushes me and I freeze.

**Aria's POV:**

We stay absolutely frozen and Niall doesn't even breathe. _Silly boy… _I turn my head slowly to the area where I heard what almost sounded like a quiet bell. Something or someone retreats farther back into the shadows between two buildings in an alley. I instinctively grip the handle of my gun which I conveniently placed under my jacket in my belt.

Niall sets me down slowly and I push him behind me. He puts his hands on my waist as if keeping me from running towards the alley, which I was, actually, planning to do.

"Who's there?" I say clearly. The alley is probably only about 20 feet away so I know that they hear me.

A quiet scuff echoes out of the alley. The sound comes from approximately 10 feet farther back than where the person was originally. _They're retreating._

"C'mon, Niall. Let's get home," I whisper while kicking off my booties and stepping gingerly onto the snow. _Shit! This stuff is cold… At least I'm wearing socks._

"You want me to give you a piggy-back ride?" he asks concernedly.

"Nah, we need to get outta here as fast as we can," I say quietly pushing him forward.

We keep a steady strong jog back until I see another shadow between buildings. _Fuck. We're being tailed._

**(A/N it's what spies/police call it when someone is following and giving reports on a person. Sorry bad definition :P)**

I grab Niall's hand and start to sprint. The sooner we get back to the hotel, the better. They wouldn't dare come under hotel security. And I'm almost positive that it's a person that is aware of my status, and knows that I'm with 2 other agents and a professionally trained security guard.

Ten seconds into our sprint I glance back. Nothing. I'm pretty sure they've stopped for now, but better safe than sorry. I slow down our pace to a run and we make it to the hotel lobby in less than 2 minutes. I'm still clutching Niall's arm to make sure he's still with me by the time we burst back into my bedroom. Niall leans over breathing heavily and eyes wide with shock. I run over to the sliding glass doors to lock them and begin closing all of the curtains. Lisbeth and Vannesa help immediately while the boys look around confusedly.

"Tail?" Vannesa says in a hushed tone as I check to make sure that all of the video recorders are still disabled and haven't been hacked.

"I think so. Didn't get a good look at him though; he was in the shadows."

"It was a man?"

"Yeah. 'Bout 6 feet, stocky, short dark hair," I describe vaguely. Vannesa seems to ponder it.

"I'll keep an eye out."

We all meet in the kitchen after locking down the penthouse. I make some coffee and slide into a stool at the counter. Tension hangs in the air and I catch Lisbeth glancing at the door anxiously.

"What's a tail?" Louis speaks first.

"When someone, like an agent, follows a person and reports their every move," Lisbeth says without looking away from the door.

"Trust your gut, always. Remember that, boys," I advise them thinking back to Lizzie's warning when we were on the phone. _Speaking of which…_

**Harry's POV:**

"What's the plan? I needta book a flight to LA as soon as possible," Aria says anxiously.

"We're coming with you. The VMA's are on the 29th and our tour starts the 31st in LA as well," I say matter-of-factly.

"Huh. That's very coincidental…" she says while thinking about something. "Did you run it by Paul?"

"We tried, but he didn't answer his phone," Zayn pipes up. Aria raises her eyebrows in surprise.

"I'll talk to him later. So when do you think we can get over to the states?"

"Tomorrow morning. The first flight out of London City Airport departs at 6am. Everyone up for that?" Lisbeth asks while looking at her phone.

Everyone nods their assent and she puts her phone away.

"Aria, can you get that squared away with Paul?"

"Sure. I'll head over to the boys' room right now."

**Vannesa's POV:  
January 24****th****, 3:55am**

_Gahhhhh._

I roll over and hit Lizzie who just shook me awake.

"Dude, we have to leave in like 5 minutes! Get yo ass up and moving!" she teases me and pulls off the covers.

Lisbeth and I slept in Aria's room last night after the boys went back to theirs. Aria talked to Paul and he gave the 'ok'. The airlines are closed for weather so now we are flying to LA in a private jet. No big deal. We have to leave even earlier since Lisbeth needs to grab some stuff from her dorm.

Also Lizzie somehow talked her way out of school for the next week; don't ask me how. Must've involved some persuasion drugs or something. MWUAHAHA. Just kidding. She's allowed since she has the highest GPA in the whole fucking college. _Genius girl._

"Ok, ok. SPEED DRESSING. Whoever is done last has to buy everyone breakfast!" I yell as Aria trudges into the loft where I slept.

We all run to our suitcases (I brought mine over last night and Lisbeth is borrowing from Aria) and try to find comfortable outfits for the plane ride. After fighting for the bathroom and hastily applying makeup and brushing our hair, we observe each other's appearances.

"Lookin' prettay spicy for getting ready in 3 minutes and 14 seconds," I laugh.

Aria is wearing leggings and a loose striped knit top (Louis will like that) **(** aria_chapter_28/set?id=61220815&lid=1970689**)**, Lizzie changed into actual _jeans _but with a cozy shirt **(** lisbeths_outfit_chapter_28/set?id=61274927&lid=1970689**)**, and I opted for some Jack Wills sweatpants with my black and pink Supras **(** vanessas_outfit_for_chapter_28/set?id=61272891&lid=1970689#stream_box**)**.

We all giggle then rush downstairs with our luggage. We turn off all the lights then head over to the boys' room. After they all drag their stuff out into the hall- with Paul bringing up the rear- we quietly take the elevator to the lobby, check out of our rooms, pay, and load into a limousine waiting for us at the curb. There is hardly any traffic at 4am, so we make it to Lisbeth's dorm and to the airport in 30 minutes. There's a Panera in the airport, and the boys end up paying for breakfast since our speed dressing contest was a three-way tie. **(A/N are there Panera's in Europe? Any European readers who'd like to enlighten me? ;P)**

At 5:08am, we board the private jet.

**Lisbeth's POV:  
5:15am**

Turns out we get to take off early, since there are no other flights out of LCY. I'm sitting next to Liam in a very plush seat and Niall and Aria sit next to each other facing us. I turn on my phone to see at least a dozen messages from Molly.

**From: Molly mah bestest biatch ever(;  
OMG LIZZIE! Holy shit is Michael ok? Oh lord this cant happen we all know that her dad is srsly dangerous. Shud I tell the agency?**

**From: Molly mah bestest biatch ever(;  
Lisbeth? U there? Is everythin ok**

**From: Molly mah bestest biatch ever(;  
I got Johnny to hack into mike's agency's system. nothing unusual is showing up**

I scroll through messages anxiously hoping to find some useful information.

"Mol replied. She said that Johnny checked Mike's agency's system but nothing came up…"

"How can he be missing and they don't even realize?!" Aria blurts.

"Maybe they think that he had some business to deal with. Some agencies are like that; I mean Vannesa just left her school!"

"What did I do?" Vannesa asks from across the aisle.

"How'd you get out of school?" Aria asks.

"Oh… well my mom's the principal so I left her a voicemail… and then I kinda just took off. She knows I can handle myself though. She's busy all the time so I learned to cope."

"Did you tell the agency that you're coming back to the states, Aria?" Niall ventures warily.

"I'm sure they knew the second I made up my mind. They'll contact me if they want to, that's for sure."

**Principal Hayes' POV:  
January 24****th****, 12:17am**

"Where is she now?" I demand from one of my tech agents.

"She's inside what appears to be a private jet, sir. They're taking off from London City Airport in approximately 2 and a half minutes. Their route is showing a horizontal course expected to land in Los Angeles, California at 5am pacific coast time."

"Damn," I swear. "What the hell does she think she's doing? And we don't even get a notification?"

"Sir," he interrupts my thoughts. "She just received a text message."

"What does it say?"

He turns the screen so I can read it:

omg. Just checked the records and hes been marked absent for evening classes yesterday. Also a fault in the school security system 12:23pm. You needta get out to LA ASAP

_What the hell does this mean?_

_**Ok, do the websites not show up? I just realized that! D: ok well the outfits are one Polyvore and my friend makes them for me, her username is jordantpretty . SO if you want to see the outfits theyre there :) and I have some on my account which is shellieflower22 ! Also I'm getting more and more worried about this being deleted since it has like officially been reported according to one of those silly "Critics United" peeps so just a reminder if this suddenly isnt here anymore, then I suppose its been deleted but i have it posted on** onedirectionfanfiction dot net** and **onedirectionfanfiction dot com **! :P**_

_**THANK YOU SO MUCH TO THE PEOPLE THAT REVIEWED! heheh heres my replies to mah guests:**  
_

_**Dearest "that guest" aka Anne: Hahhaha i love you! and your statistics lol ;D haha really?! omg you just made my day. haha i dont have twitter though but I wish i couldve seen it haha! thanks im glad you like my story :) xx**_

_**Madeline&Cecilia: HI! :) hahaha you guys are too funny :) OMG im so happy you're liking it ;D thanks Madeline for spreading the word about this :) and thank you Cecilia for reviewing as well! you make my life ok haha love ya gurlies! xx wait who is Marcus Butler? lol i feel like i should know this..?**_

_**JOCELYNNN: OMG I LOVE YOU. OMG i fangirl every time you review:) hahaha thanks for reviewing and returning lovee! xxx**_

_**LOVE YOU ALL MAH FLUFFY CUPCAKES. ;D xxx**_


	31. Chapter 29- Rough Skies

**I'm so so sorry that it took so long to update I really am! I hope that you enjoy this though, and it's by far my longest chappie! Over 4,000 words! Enjoy! xxx**

**Molly's POV:  
January 24****th****, 12:13am**

I move down the hallway silently using night-vision glasses because I'm just cool like that. All students are supposed to be in their dorm by 12 and the professors come around and do role call basically to make sure no one snuck out or whatever. But c'mon, we're all spies. We're all teenagers. Do they really expect us to follow all the rules? It's not like they catch us anyways.

I'd say about 69% of the students sneak out after midnight everyday and nearly every student has at some point in their life. To say that we know how to cheat the system would probably be an understatement; we could most likely shut the security and surveillance systems down long enough to evacuate the whole student population and then turn it back on without any of our managers noticing. It's not like we're committing crime… ;)

I tiptoe up to the locked doors of the library and check my surroundings: all clear.

I put an earpiece in and press a button on the center of it.

"Aye, Johnny," I whisper. "Did you finish your project in the library today?"

Code for: I need to get into the library to finish a job. _Just in case the adults have figured out how to tap into our conversation. Better safe than in detention. _

"Yeah, at around 1," his voice comes through clearly. What he means: I'll have it open in 1 minute.

"Cool. Thanks, man." I click off and the tiny red light above the doors blink until they turn green.

I push the revolving doors around silently and move to the back without a noise since I'm only wearing fuzzy socks on my feet. I turn on one of the computers reserved for the professors and swipe a fake card that Johnny gives only to his favorite people ;)

I log in as Loretta Beckner since Aria hacked her a while ago and told practically the whole school the username and password.

_I miss that girl._

For some reason Ms. Beckner is pretty high up on the authority ladder; don't ask me how! She must be Principal Hayes's grandmother or something. Seriously, doe.

I click around until I'm into The Database and find Michael Blackwood. I click on the link to his agency and it opens to a list of the students. I hack into his school's database and find a page with info on the security system.

January 23, 2012, 12am clear  
1amclear  
2amclear  
3amclear  
4amclear  
5amclear  
6amclear  
7amclear  
8amopen main doorsCentral Intelligence Agency presidents meeting  
9amclose doors  
10amclear  
11:12:32amSYSTEM ERROR OCURRED  
11:13:02amSYSTEM BACK ONLINE  
12pmclear  
. . .

_HOLY MOTHER OF GOD HE BROKE INTO A TOP AGENCY AND THEY DIDN'T EVEN SUSPECT A THING._

A small beep echoes in my right ear and I click my earpiece on.

"DUDE! I just hacked into Mike's school's system again and he was marked absent for all his classes after 12pm! His last class before then was Middle Eastern Languages and it ended at 11:30am." Johnny shouts into my ear and I wince.

"Shh! Ok, ok, I'll text Aria right now. Way to use code, man. Hey John, book me the soonest flight to L.A. yeah? First class would be lovely," I say quietly making up my mind.

I whip out my phone and dash off a text to Aria, temporarily ignoring the ones from Lisbeth.

**To: Aria mah boo(:  
****omg. Just checked the records and hes been marked absent for evening classes yesterday. Also a fault in the school security system 11:12:32am** **PST. You needta get out to LA ASAP**

I delete the history, clear the cache and log off of the computer before tiptoeing to the revolving doors. I push through them without a sound and stand against the wall. The only light comes from a glowing red EXIT sign about 20 feet to my left.

"Alright, you have a flight to LA in like 2 and a half hours. Come to my dorm and pick up your tickets, I'll fill you in. You done in the library yet?" Johnny asks.

"Yeah, I'm finished. Thanks, bro. I'll be up in a minute," I click off the earpiece and wait until the light flashes red above the doors again before venturing up to Johnny's room.

**Lisbeth's POV:  
On the boys' private jet to LA; 5:19am**

"Oh my God, Molly just texted me!" Aria exclaims pulling out her iPhone.

Everyone turns to her anxiously and she calmly reads the message out loud. The jet engines rumble as we take off from the runway and lift off giving me a cool sensation in my stomach.

"O-M-G just checked the records and he's been marked absent for evening classes yesterday. Also a fault in the school security system at 11:12:32am PST. You needta get out to LA A-S-A-P."

"Call her and write down all the info we've got," I say getting excited. I mean, what can I say? I haven't been on an assignment for years now and this is pretty damn intense!

Aria dials Molly and I get out a pen and notepad. She puts her phone on speaker as it rings.

"You don't have service though…?" Liam says as more of a question than a statement.

"Aria and Vannesa have a… special… cell phone carrier. Not your typical AT&T or Verizon, babe," I say knowingly and Aria winks.

"Aghh! Lucky," Niall pouts looking at his own iPhone disappointedly. "I wish I were a spy."

Aria opens her mouth to say something but Molly picks up, cutting her off.

"Aria! Girl, you don't even know how much I miss you!" Molly whisper yells.

Aria laughs and shakes her head, "Sneaking around again? You naughty girl."

"Shhh! Don't get me caught!" she giggles. "I'm on my way to Johnny's. Guess who's going to LA?!"

"You're coming, too?!"

"Hell yeah, sista! You so need to fill me in on everything! I bet Zayn is even sexier in real life than my posters. Those eyes… and his cheekbones-"

"Hey babe, you're on speaker phone." Aria laughs.

"HELLO!" All the boys yell with their accents and Zayn is still blushing from Molly's confession.

"Holy shit. Aria. They did not just hear all of that. Did they?"

"Maybeee…" Aria grins mischievously.

"YOU BIATCH," Molly laughs it off and we hear a guy's voice in the background. She tells us all the information she and Johnny gathered and I write it down. "Ok, well I think I'll arrive in LA before you so I'll try to find more clues. See you soon, love you all!"

Aria hangs up and I look over my notes:

-Security was broken into at 11:12:32am (Aria's dad)  
-11:30am was the last time Mike was marked as present in class  
- 11:40am was when Aria got the buttdial  
-Mike didn't attend any classes after 12pm (when lunch break ends)

"So… I'm guessing that after Aria's dad-" I start.

"My dad, too!" Vannesa butts in.

"Right-"

"Please, let's not even refer to him as our father. From now on it's Roch." Aria pinches the bridge of her nose and Niall rubs her back.

"Ok. So I think that Roch broke into Mike's agency. Someone as talented as him would only take 30 seconds which was the allotted time that the security was down. Then he must've gone to Michael's dorm and waited for Mike to come back from class. At 11:40am Aria got the buttdial- that's 27 minutes after the break-in," I explain.

"So now what?" Harry asks blatantly.

All us girls share a glance.

"Now we have to find Mike. Make sure he's ok… and find out why Roch wanted him," Vannesa says slowly mulling things over in her head.

Everyone is left to their own thoughts and I lay down already getting a headache. Liam pulls my head onto his lap and plays with some of my curls. I study his chocolate eyes and find concern.

"You ok, babe?" he whispers not wanting to disturb the already sleeping Zayn.

"Yeah. It's just that… well I think we have a long trip ahead of us," I sigh and Liam caresses my cheek gently.

"I'll be with you the entire time. I'm here for you, babe," he kisses my forehead and continues to stroke my hair before dozing off and I nod into a restless sleep soon after.

**Vannesa's POV:  
1 ½ hours left of the flight**

I scroll through a gossip column on my small laptop and Aria's name catches my eye. The article includes several pictures of a mob of girls chasing and surrounding a girl with dark brown ha- _OMG THAT'S ARIA!_

I skim the article and my mouth is open in shock by the time I finish. Aria shoots me a quizzical look and I get and motion for her to follow me. I walk back to the nice sitting area farther back in the plane and plop down on the squishy couch. Aria slides in next to me and looks at the page open on my computer screen.

"Ohhh…" Aria presses her lips together. "That."

"How much did I miss before I got here?!" I whisper-yell.

"Just a few minor events."

"Minor?!"

"Ok, so not so minor," Aria shakes her head indifferently.

"Damn, girl."

She giggles and I pull her into a hug. "Sistersss foreva! I got yo back now!"

Harry walks over to the sofa and sits down on the other side of me.

"Hello, ladies," Harry winks at me and I shake my head a little but a small grin creeps onto my face.

"Try not to be too loud; the walls are thin," Aria smirks and I try to hit her but she deflects it easily.

She winks at me as she walks back farther in the plane to where the kitchen is. Yeah, this plane has a fucking _kitchen_. I'm not even sure that my agency has a single jet as nice as this one. Harry clicks on the TV on the wall and puts on some romantic movie. I give him a 'seriously?' glare and he chuckles.

**Aria's POV:**

I walk back to the kitchen and notice a small door off the hallway... _I'll check it out later._ Farther back is a small room with the door slightly open and muffled snoring. _Paul._

I start looking through the fridge when I hear footsteps approaching. I look in the reflection of the stainless steel fridge door just to see a sleepy Niall. His arms go around my waist and I get tingles all over at his comforting touch.

"You hungry?" I ask quietly while pulling out the milk.

"Nah. Just wanted to check up on you. How're ya feeling?" he admits softly.

Niall's warm breath tickles my neck and I concentrate solely on pouring milk into a mug. It takes all I have to not turn around and kiss him.

"I'm fine," I mutter stiffly.

"Don't lie to me, Aria," he says sadly as I put my mug into the microwave and turn it on.

His hands are still on my waist when I turn around and look him in the eyes.

"I just don't know what to do. I don't even know where to start to find Mike, and, this is coming from a secret agent, I'm scared…" I blurt.

"Of your da- Roch?" Niall corrects himself.

"No… more of what he can do," I say slowly as terrifying images flash through my mind.

Niall pulls my head close to him and I rest my forehead on his chest and wrap my arms around him.

He embraces me tightly and puts his chin on the top of my head, "We're all on your side, Aria. We'll find your brother, catch Roch, and it'll all work out."

"Thats one helluva task..." I mumble into his shirt (which smells amazing by the way).

"But we can do it. I'll be here for you every step on the way."

The microwave beeps, interrupting the sensitive moment and Niall breaks away. Vannesa walks in and I look at Niall. I mouth 'thank you so much' before tuning in to Vannesa's rant.

"...and so he puts in some sappy romantic movie so I hit him with a pillow and he pinned me to the back of the couch-"

"And you couldn't possibly pinch his pressure point and flip him over your head?" I say, while spooning hot cocoa mix into my drink.

Vannesa stares me down but I can't help the devilish smile form on my face.

"But ANYWAYS-"

Suddenly I set down my drink on the counter and all my senses come alert. I grab Vannesa's arm. She tenses up and looks at me in the eye. Her eyes widen as the same instincts overtake her body.

We walk quickly to the lads and Lisbeth to see her just waking up and looking around confusedly. She takes a moment to register our faces in her mind before she sits up straight waking Liam up in the process.

"Do you guys feel that?" she whispers.

Vannesa and I nod and I dig through my bag. I pull out a small handgun which I sure hope I won't have to use, but better safe than dead.

When I load a clip into it and cock it I see that Vannesa has done the same.

"Stay with the lads?" I direct towards Lisbeth quietly.

"Yeah, I'll let you know if anything fishy happens back here."

"If we aren't back in 3 minutes... I don't even know. Trust your gut." Vannesa adds before following me towards the cockpit.

I hold my gun out and approach the door to the front silently. I press my ear to the door and listen closely. _Nothing._

I look to Vannesa and she nods. I slide the door open and survey the small space, my finger hovering over the trigger.

Vannesa lowers her gun and shrugs, "Maybe something is outside?"

The sensation of falling takes over when I see that the plane is dipping downwards through the windows... And there's no one piloting the plane.

"Vannesa... Where the fuck is the pilot?"

"Shit!" she runs out back the way we came.

Lisbeth comes rushing in seconds after Vannesa as I try remembering how to pilot a plane. I look to Lisbeth and she smirks.

"I got this, girl. Leave it to the professional," she winks and takes the controls. O_h yeah, she took the vehicle piloting and driving course when I signed up for an extra hand to hand combat course._

"Holler if ya need me," I say before jogging out of the cockpit and putting my gun in the waistband of my leggings.

The boys are all looking around confusedly and talking quietly among each other when they notice me.

"Ok, so the pilot is missing, Lisbeth is driving the plane now, and Vannesa is looking for the pilot... And I'm going to help her. You guys just stay here and keep quiet unless you see anything," I finish and their mouths are all agape.

"Erm... Ok," Liam agrees worriedly.

They're all silent when I notice a flash of movement. I whip out my gun and all the boys flinch. Vannesa rushes in and shakes her head. I lower my gun.

"Paul was asleep in a small bedroom back there... And no sign of a pilot. We're the only people on the plane… right?"

"As far as I know..." A sudden vision of the door I saw earlier flashes in my mind. "Be right back."

I walk quickly and quietly to the door near the kitchen. I fling the door open and scan the small storage closet before being tackled out into the hallway from my right. My gun skitters across the floor out of my reach. A man with short brown hair and pilot's uniform scrambles to his feet seconds after me. I punch him in the stomach which merely fazes him. He reaches for his waistband but I beat him to it, kicking the gun out of his pants and onto the floor. I flip the lock on Paul's door. _He doesn't need to be involved in this._

_He's an agent. But who does this little fucker work for…?_

I parry the dude's punches and duck under a roundhouse kick, grabbing his ankle as it strikes the air inches above my head. I twist his leg and flip him onto the carpet. I get a better look at his face. _Eh, maybe early 20's? Not a top agent for sure… probably specializes in transporting other agents under the radar. Jets, boats, cars… maybe even submarines._

He flips over so now he's on top and uses his broader build to his advantage. I can barely move under his firm grip on my shoulders and am in a confined space to begin with. I can hear Paul rattling the door and roll my eyes. I give up struggling against the bigger agent and look him in the eye.

He narrows his eyes at me, as if scrutinizing me. He has blue eyes. Almost like Niall's… maybe not as vivid.

"Do you even know why you're here?" I whisper sadly, hoping to catch him off guard. It works.

He furrows his eyebrows and pulls back a little, but quickly recovers. I don't try and make a move. Yet.

"It's an assignment. You should know," he mutters, avoiding eye contact.

"Oh trust me, I do. And if it's my agency that sent you, then you should aslo know that I haven't exactly been taking orders from anyone lately."

"It's not your agency."

"Who is it?" I prompt him eagerly. Too eagerly.

**Agent 101's POV:**

"Look, I'm going to go back to the cockpit and you're going to pretend that you just found me in the bathroom. If you let slip _anything_, I will not hesitate to crash the plane. And I'm the only one with a parachute. Once we land, you'll come with me, without struggle. Got it?" I lie to the pretty girl beneath me while adjusting the parachute pack on my back.

We'd probably be leaving before landing, but she doesn't need to know that yet. My orders were clear and simple: "Get the girl, and bring her to me. Dispose of anyone who gets in the way."

**Vannesa's POV:**

After Aria walks off to who knows where, I decide to join Lisbeth at the nose of the plane.

"Hey girllll, heyy!" I grin sliding into the chair next to her.

"Ok, there is a rogue pilot who is maybe probably most definitely an agent walking around the plane and you're smiling?" Lisbeth says only half-joking.

"Aria can handle it," I wave it off. Another bad feeling washes over me like a wave. I see some black specks growing larger in the sky at my 8 o'clock. "Lisbeth… are those planes?"

"What are you talking about… nothing is on the radar," Lizzie gives me a 'stop-joking-with-me' look.

"Dude, I'm dead serious! My 8 o'clock!" I protest getting kind of panicky.

She squints her eyes and widens them once she sees.

"What the fuck?" she murmurs while flipping switches and pressing buttons on the dashboard.

Small orange-ish and gold lights appear right below the wings of the ever nearing aircraft.

"HOLY SHIT! Lisbeth that's fucking gunfire!" I practically scream.

"What?!" She gives me a horrified look before exclaiming, "That's impossible! They still aren't showing up!"

We look at each other with horror. It clicks in both of our brains: _they're spies._

**Aria's POV:**

After Mr. Bossy pants gives me the low down, I choose to ignore his orders despite the threats. _He can't crash the plane if he's locked up in the closet. First I must get some vital information._

"I said, got it?" he presses me harder against the floor.

I put all my strength into getting my arms free before grabbing his face and bringing it to mine. I kiss him roughly and arch my back so our bodies are pressing against each other. I flutter my eyes open and spot my gun about 7 inches out of arms length to my right. I shut my eyes tightly and respond to his hungry tongue. _Well I guess that the agencies never considered 'romance-deficiency' as a disadvantage._

I roll us over so that I'm straddling him before breaking our lips apart and grabbing my gun. His eyes fly open and harden immediately. I wrench open the airplane door and cold wind whips around the hallway, blowing my hair crazily. I push the man farther back so that his head is literally on the edge of the doorway. I press my gun to his temple and lean close to his face.

"Who do you work for?" I have to yell over the gusts. He glares at me with his lips tightly pressed together. "Don't make me do this…" I press the gun harder against his head.

"You took advantage of me," I don't hear him but I read his lips easily.

"Isn't that what we're taught to do, though?" he doesn't react but I see agreement in his eyes. "You had so much potential," I add dejectedly.

He opens his mouth and for a split second I believe he is actually going to tell me. Until I sense movement behind me and a shot is fired. The agent's eyes roll back in his head and I loosen my grip in shock. He slips out of my grasp and spirals out of the airplane. I whip around prepared to beat the person behind me.

"What the hell, Paul?!" I scream angrily. "He was about to tell me who he worked for!"

Paul looks at me confusedly. _Dumbass security guard._ I think furiously.

"ARIA! _ARIA GET UP HERE!_" I hear Lisbeth yell from the front of the plane.

I throw Paul another glare before jogging up to the cockpit.

"6 fighter jets approaching quickly; our plane has no chance of out flying them. They've opened fire and I'd like us to take a moment to realize that we _don't have any fucking artillery_," Vannesa emphasizes the last part.

"Well shit," I blurt. "Oh yeah, Paul just killed the pilot right before he told me who he worked for. He flew out of the airplane after Paul shot him."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Lisbeth demands, not even taking a second to look up from the dash.

"Dead serious. Hey should we tell the guys that we are about to engage in a dogfight?" I bite my lip.

(**A/N a dogfight is like aerial combat so like a fight between airplanes for those of you who didn't know ****)**

"Aria, we can't engage in a dogfight if we don't have any weapons!" Vannesa repeats herself.

"So what do we do?" I begin to get antsy. So many questions are running through my head.

_Who was the pilot? Who did he work for? Who's in the fighter jets? Why are they after us? Why are they after _me_?_

"I'll try to maneuver around or away from them; you should go and try to find some parachutes," Lisbeth says worriedly.

"Ok, I'm on it. What do we do if there aren't any?" I ask dreading the answer.

"Hope for the best and pray for our lives," Vannesa says seriously.

I shake my head and run out to search the entire plane. I open cabinets and storage compartment furiously and as I reach the kitchen, the first impact is made. The sound reverberates around the interior of the plane and the entire plane shakes. My mug of forgotten (and not so) hot cocoa slips off the counter and I catch it right before it shatters on the floor. I dump it quickly in the sink and continue to look for parachute packs.

"What's going on?!" Louis bursts into the kitchen.

"We're under attack," I reply while slamming more cabinets. "Where are the damn parachutes?!"

"WHAT?!"

"You heard me Tommo! Get the rest of the guys to look, too!" I say starting to really panic.

Louis scrambles out of the kitchen as the left side of the plane is sprayed with bullets. _Oh my God, this is the end. This is the end. I am going to die. I'm failing. I'm failing… THE CLOSET._

I sprint to the closet and fling it open to see some parachute packs set neatly on a shelf. As I reach up to grab the pile, they all topple on top of me as the aircraft tilts over.

"WE'VE LOST ALL POWER IN THE RIGHT ENGINE! I REPEAT: THE RIGHT ENGINE IS DOWN!" Lisbeth screams from the front.

I lug all of the packs with me to the back door which the pilot had fallen out of.

"I found the parachutes!" I yell and the boys come rushing back. I count frantically. _Fuck, fuckity, fuck on a motherfucking mountain of fucks. There's only 8 parachutes._

**Vannesa's POV:**

Once the right engine shuts down, my heart thuds into my stomach. I look to Lisbeth as the plane starts to splutter and fall diagonally in the sky.

We hear Aria yell that she's found parachutes and just leave the cockpit.

"Go! Go! Go!" she yells as the boys put on the packs. Paul already has one on and she flings open the door.

"Should I go?!" he has to yell over the wind.

"If you wanna fucking survive!" she shakes her head in disbelief. "Everyone keep your phones on, we may not land right next to each other!"

Paul jumps out of the plane and my hands tremble slightly as I click the buckle on my pack. Louis jumps, then Zayn, then Liam holding Lisbeth tightly. _They have to make it. If anyone makes it, let it be Liam and Lisbeth._

I step up and look down nervously. Vertigo washes over me when I feel a big warm hand take mine.

"Ready?" I see him mouth.

"As ready as I'll ever be…" I say more to myself.

Then I jump off a fucking burning private jet holding Harry Styles' hand. What has the world come to.

Aria watches us anxiously and I see Niall take her hand. I also notice that she isn't wearing a parachute.

_Oh my fuck._

**SSI Academy: Principal Hayes' POV:**

"Sir, sir all traces of the jet have just disappeared," one of my techies tells me nervously.

"What do you mean 'disappeared'?" I demand.

"It's gone down."

"…As in… shot… down?" I interrogate.

"I believe so, sir."

_Jesus Christ._

__**TADDAAAA! WHat'd you think? Please leave reviews so I can know :) And my repliesss:**

** Ivy the panda: haha i love your name ;) AWHH thank you so so much! And oh really? AHHH that makes me feel so good 3 thank you for everything! xx  
**

** Anne: :) hey girl hey! :D ohhhh ok I know who Tyler Oakley is ;) hahaha havta love him. but yeah well imma continue updating here anyways ;D sucha rebel hehe!**

** Jocelyn: awwh Im sorry I just saw your review! But I don't think I couldve anyways because the story is still in like January :/ sorry, love! xxx**

** Maddy and Cecilia.. right?: haha sorry if I got your names wrong but it was you two right? But yaya thank yousss! :D Aww I hope you are ok from the hurricane! At least you had a sleepover :) thats always fun! I got 2 days of school off because of Sandy too :P it wasn't very bad here in northern VA though at all! Love you guyss xxx3**

**OK THANK YOU for reviewingg and to everyone who reads! What countries are you all from? :D USA BABY! haha I wish I was British or Australian though :P xxx**


	32. Chapter 30- I thought you were dead

**OHMYLORD IM SO SORRY I CANNOT EVEN ALSKJDFBHAGLI**

**Im sorry for temporarily dying i cant even apologize enough for leaving you all hanging lol especially right there when they dont have parachutes xD you might have to reeread the last chappie... whole story to remember haha jk but really sorry bout that. I forget since in my head I know whats going to happen next... butobviously you guys dont :P**

**ALSO i posted on the other site that my laptop had broken but i forgot to tell you guys over here! SOrry bout that! buti have a new one now, but that contributed to the very very unexceptionally long delay :/**

**its been like a month... IM SUCH A BIOTCH IM SO SORRY BLAHHHH. enjoy this relatively long chapter, and ill update soon I PROMISE OMG IF I DONT THEN YOU DONT HESITATE TO SPAM ME WITH EMAILS KAY?! sonofabrave **

**Niall's POV:  
January 24****th****, 9:21am Pacific Coast Time**

As soon as Vannesa and Harry jump, I grab Aria's hand.

"We have to jump now!" I yell over the wind and look at her fearfully.

Adrenaline pumps through my veins as the plane lurches and I nearly fall into the sky. Aria pulls me back farther into the plane and glances around nervously.

"You go, Niall! I'll be right behind you!" Aria tries to reassure me.

"No! C'mon lets jump together! Please, babe, we have to do this," I plead with her. Then I notice the empty space on her shoulders wear the straps of a parachute pack should be. _Holy shit._

"ARIA! WHAT THE HELL?! There is no fucking way I'm leaving you behind! Look, we can just like use the same one!" I say, the plan making perfect sense in my mind.

"But with us being at the altitude of 6,790 feet in the air, and weighing approximately 260 pounds together, we'll fall at a rate of 10 feet per second in which case the parachute may or may not have time to function properly, putting both of our lives on the line!" Aria spits out frantically. "Niall, you have to save yourself! Go! I'll figure something out!"

**(A/N I just made all those figures up so it's completely illogical, so don't try to look it up haha)**

I roll my eyes at her selfishness and grab her waist, pulling her close to my body before throwing both of us out of the plane.

**Louis' POV:**

_Oh my fuck. Oh my fuck. Holy fuck, I'm going to die._

Something flies upwards (or maybe I just flew past it…) out of the corner of my eye.

_Oh man. Was that my penis._

_Oh my god I think my dick fell off I'm falling so fucking fast._

I try to look over but my eyes are watering from the wind.

_Oh, it was just Zayn. Should I pull the ripcord now? Dear lord, I have no idea what I'm doing._

I tug at the bright orange cord on the right strap of the pack. Nothing. I pull again, harder. I'm starting to panic now, yanking frantically at the cord until all of a sudden I am jerked backwards in the air as the parachute bursts open and catches the wind. My mouth is open in terror but I don't make a sound. I look over to Zayn and motion for him to pull the ripcord.

**Zayn's POV:**

_HOLY MOTHER OF GOD OH MY FUCK THIS IS THE END. I AM DYING; I AM A FALLING DEAD BODY. WHAT IS THE WORLD COMING TO? OH MY LORD. SHIT! MY HAIR! SWEET JESUS, MY QUIFF IS ALL MESSED UP, DAMN IT-_

I notice Louis waving his arms at me and motioning to pull something. His parachute is already open and I am falling a lot faster than him now. _Why the hell is he doing the 'honk the horn' motion that you do to truck drivers?!_

I crane my neck to still be able to see him and he points at the strap on his shoulder and motions pulling it again. _THE RIPCORD._

I yank on the little orange thing on the shoulder strap and the parachute opens easily. I look below me and see a red parachute not too far ahead. It must be Paul.

**Lisbeth's POV:**

Liam and I fall horizontally in the sky, with both of our arms outstretched and holding hands tightly. I see Louis and then Zayn open their parachutes rather early… _Idiots. It'll be time for the VMA's by the time they land._

I roll my eyes and Liam catches my gesture. He smiles nervously and I give his hand a squeeze. In a matter of seconds we plummet past the other boys. I count to 13 and then look at Liam.

"On three we have to break apart and pull the ripcord, kay?" I instruct over the rushing air.

He nods and I count to three using my fingers. I push off of his hands to give us some space before pulling the ripcord calmly. I look up to see my purple parachute blossoming above me and grin. Liam has a look of terror on his face, but thank God had no troubles opening his parachute either. I give him a thumbs up and he gulps visibly. I flash him a reassuring smile and he smiles back weakly.

**Harry's POV:**

"Ready?" I say to Vannesa but the wind carries my voice away.

She mumbles something before jumping and taking me with her. I tighten my grip on her small hand and my mouth is open in a silent scream of terror as my stomach drops and adrenaline pumps through my body. The wind presses my curls flat onto my face and I just close my eyes in fear. I feel Vannesa squeeze my hand and she brushes the curls off my face so that they are just flapping behind my head.

She has a horrified look on her face as she points up towards Niall and Aria standing in the doorway. I shoot her a quizzical look while trying my best not to shit my pants. She points to the parachute on her back and shakes her head, then points back up at the plane.

"What?!" I shout as loud as I can.

"She doesn't have a parachute!" Vannesa screams.

_Holy mother of god._

We both look back up in time to see Niall hurling himself out the plane with Aria in his arms. Vannesa's eyes widen in apprehension and she bites her lip. Then a deafening thunder reaches our ears and I see an explosion of orange, red and yellow flames. Shrapnel of the jet scatters over the sky as the plane combusts with inferno. I see Aria and Niall ball up before Vannesa pulls my head down for me and motions for me to get into fetal position. I immediately obey and can feel us catching speed rapidly.

**Niall's POV:  
January 24th, 9:21am Pacific Coast Time**

As soon as Vannesa and Harry jump, I grab Aria's hand.

"We have to jump now!" I yell over the wind and look at her fearfully.

Adrenaline pumps through my veins as the plane lurches and I nearly fall into the sky. Aria pulls me back farther into the plane and glances around nervously. She grabs her purse quickly before looking at me again.

"You go, Niall! I'll be right behind you!" Aria tries to reassure me.

"No! C'mon lets jump together! Please, babe, we have to do this," I plead with her. Then I notice the empty space on her shoulders wear the straps of a parachute pack should be. Holy shit.

"ARIA! WHAT THE HELL?! There is no fucking way I'm leaving you behind! Look, we can just like use the same one!" I say, the plan making perfect sense in my mind.

"But with us being at the altitude of 6,790 feet in the air, and weighing approximately 260 pounds together, we'll fall at a rate of 10 feet per second in which case the parachute may or may not have time to function properly, putting both of our lives on the line!" Aria spits out frantically. "Niall, you have to save yourself! Go! I'll figure something out!"

**(A/N I just made all those figures up so it's completely illogical, so don't try to look it up haha)**

I roll my eyes at her selfishness and grab her waist, pulling her close to my body before throwing both of us out of the plane.

**Louis' POV:**

_Oh my fuck. Oh my fuck. Holy fuck, I'm going to die._

Something flies upwards (or maybe I just flew past it…) out of the corner of my eye.

_Oh man. Was that my penis._

_Oh my god I think my dick fell off I'm falling so fucking fast._

I try to look over but my eyes are watering from the wind.

_Oh, it was just Zayn. Should I pull the ripcord now? Dear lord, I have no idea what I'm doing._

I tug at the bright orange cord on the right strap of the pack. Nothing. I pull again, harder. I'm starting to panic now, yanking frantically at the cord until all of a sudden I am jerked backwards in the air as the parachute bursts open and catches the wind. My mouth is open in terror but I don't make a sound. I look over to Zayn and motion for him to pull the ripcord.

**Zayn's POV:**

_HOLY MOTHER OF GOD OH MY FUCK THIS IS THE END. I AM DYING; I AM A FALLING DEAD BODY. WHAT IS THE WORLD COMING TO? OH MY LORD. SHIT! MY HAIR! SWEET JESUS, MY QUIFF IS ALL MESSED UP, DAMN IT-_

I notice Louis waving his arms at me and motioning to pull something. His parachute is already open and I am falling a lot faster than him now. _Why the hell is he doing the 'honk the horn' motion that you do to truck drivers?!_

I crane my neck to still be able to see him and he points at the strap on his shoulder and motions pulling it again. _THE RIPCORD._

I yank on the little orange thing on the shoulder strap and the parachute opens easily. I look below me and see a red parachute not too far ahead. It must be Paul.

**Lisbeth's POV:**

Liam and I fall horizontally in the sky, with both of our arms outstretched and holding hands tightly. I see Louis and then Zayn open their parachutes rather early_… Idiots. It'll be time for the VMA's by the time they land._

I roll my eyes and Liam catches my gesture. He smiles nervously and I give his hand a squeeze. In a matter of seconds we plummet past the other boys. I count to 13 and then look at Liam.

"On three we have to break apart and pull the ripcord, kay?" I instruct over the rushing air.

He nods and I count to three using my fingers. I push off of his hands to give us some space before pulling the ripcord calmly. I look up to see my purple parachute blossoming above me and grin. Liam has a look of terror on his face, but thank God had no troubles opening his parachute either. I give him a thumbs up and he gulps visibly. I flash him a reassuring smile and he smiles back weakly.

**Harry's POV:**

"Ready?" I say to Vannesa but the wind carries my voice away.

She mumbles something before jumping and taking me with her. I tighten my grip on her small hand and my mouth is open in a silent scream of terror as my stomach drops and adrenaline pumps through my body. The wind presses my curls flat onto my face and I just close my eyes in fear. I feel Vannesa squeeze my hand and she brushes the curls off my face so that they are just flapping behind my head.

She has a horrified look on her face as she points up towards Niall and Aria standing in the doorway. I shoot her a quizzical look while trying my best not to shit my pants. She points to the parachute on her back and shakes her head, then points back up at the plane.

"What?!" I shout as loud as I can.

"She doesn't have a parachute!" Vannesa screams.

_Holy mother of god._

We both look back up in time to see Niall hurling himself out the plane with Aria in his arms. Vannesa's eyes widen in apprehension and she bites her lip. Then a deafening thunder reaches our ears and I see an explosion of orange, red and yellow flames. Shrapnel of the jet scatters over the sky as the plane combusts into a blazing inferno. I see Aria and Niall ball up before Vannesa pulls my head down for me and motions for me to get into fetal position. I immediately obey and can feel us catching speed rapidly.

**Aria's POV:**

All of a sudden Niall grabs my waist and hurls both of us out of the airplane.

"Holy fuck, Niall! What the- oh my god. Jesus Christ we're both gonna die!" I scream more in fear of our fate rather than the fact that we are plummeting through the sky.

I hear the screech of metal from behind and immediately curl up into Niall's chest.

"Make yourself as small as you can and please for the love of God don't let go of me," I say and I know he hears me when he tightens his embrace and pulls his legs in.

We begin to fall faster and bits of shrapnel cut through the air and one makes contact with my hand.

"Shit!" I hiss and retract my hand instinctively. Bad move.

I slip from my secure position against Niall and find myself dangling precariously below him. He quickly pulls himself to me with a strong arm and wraps both of his arms around my waist.

"I'll never let you go," he whispers in my ear as the wind whooshes around us.

I smile bleakly as I unsuccessfully try to wipe the blood from my left hand. I sigh in resignation and focus instead on our decreasing altitude. I count down in my head and look into Niall's concerned eyes.

"Ready?" I shout and move my hand to the orange cord on the strap of the parachute.

He barely nods before I pull on it and shut my eyes in a quick prayer. _If my estimate of our distance from the ground is correct, and the parachute opens on time, then we should have enough time to fall safely and land without a problem._

The wind catches the parachute and suspends us in the burning sky for a split second before we start our descent. Since our weight is nearly double everyone else's, we fall faster and soon catch up to Vanessa and Harry who each released their parachutes moments before us.

**Louis' POV:**

I am 10 meters from the ground. _What do I do. What the hell am I doing._

Before I know it, my feet hit the ground and my knees buckle at the sudden weight. I groan in pain just as Zayn lands on his... Back...

I can't help but laugh, "And what the fuck are _you_ doing?"

He gives me the finger as he untangles himself from the parachute and hard earth. Zayn pats his flattened quiff anxiously as something flies into my peripheral view.

"Zaynnnn!" Liam screams before crashing into him and landing them both on the ground.

I double over laughing until Lisbeth lands gracefully, slow jogging it off. She slaps my arm playfully before helping Liam to his feet and giving him a peck on the lips.

"And the queen has arrived. Delivering a smooch to the not so graceful peasant, Liam James Payne," I tease, receiving another rude hand gesture in return. "Whatever, peasants. I'll be at my throne."

I start to strut away just as Niall lands while _holding_ Aria just seconds ahead of Harry and Vannesa.

"You just couldn't keep your hands off of her could you, leprechaun?" I tut and Niall blushes furiously. "Awh he's blushing!" I wink at Aria and she rolls her eyes.

"It's windburn," Niall mumbles rubbing his cheeks.

I raise my eyebrows and he glares at me. I'm about to make another remark but a beast crashes into the clearing-

**Aria's POV:**

"Paul! There you are!" I cry out as Paul stumbles towards us with dirt stains all over his polo. "Not that I was worried about you... Or anything..." I correct myself a little late. _Dumb bastard. Killing my only lead._

"We should get going," Paul says breathlessly, leaning on his knees.

"Yeah," I agree and do a quick head count. I check the GPS on my phone, "Ok let's just call a couple taxis, we're only 15 minutes from the house that the boys are so graciously renting for us all," I flash a warm smile at Niall.

Everyone nods and I survey the area while Liam calls a taxi service. Palm trees grow tall on either side of the road going to the city. A few cars zip past but hardly give us a second glance. It's about 56 degrees and partly cloudy, the dark hue and denseness of the clouds indicate that there's a high chance of showers starting soon.

"Ok, two taxis are on their way. They should be here in 5," Liam announces as I help Niall discard his parachute pack.

"Guys... I don't have my clothes," Louis says on the verge of panic. My stomach drops and anger crashes over my body. _How could I have forgotten the damn luggage?! My laptop… and gear. Fuck._ I feel a hand rubbing my back and look up to see Niall with a sympathetic look.

"It's not your fault, babe. It was either death, or lose a few outfits and my singing Justin Bieber toothbrush," he reasons with me and I giggle.

"You had a Justin Bieber toothbrush," I smirk and he pretends to tackle me until a taxi drives slowly up. _Damn, that was fast. I wish I were a celebrity..._

We all move closer to the road but the taxi just continues by.

"What a letdown!" Louis whines with a pout.

"Oh shush, it'll be here before you know it," Vannesa rolls her eyes at his antics.

Sure enough, two cabs come into view and slow as they near us. The cab drivers shoot us weird looks. _Great. We look like hobos and have no luggage. Welcome to LA everybody._

"Thank you," Liam nods to both of them politely. "Ok, Lisbeth and I in this cab… along with Paul, Harry, and Vannesa?"

We all nod our consent as the first group clambers into the yellow car.

Lisbeth rolls down the window, "See ya at the house, yeah?"

I give her a thumbs up and turn to our taxi driver as they drive away.

"Where your luggage?" he asks with a thick Spanish accent.

"We don't have any, sir," Louis says with a straight face.

The driver crinkles his nose at him and Louis is about to strangle him or something but I cut him off.

"No tenemos ningún equipajes," I say getting impatient. He furrows his eyebrows in suspicion and starts blabbing in ridiculously fast Spanish.

"¿Por qué estás aquí? ¿Eres criminales? Creo que la gente blanca es mental!"

"I swear we aren't bringing drugs or anything! Just let us in! I'll pay you really well!" I nearly yell at him.

He stares blankly at me and I'm about to translate when I hear the screech of tires behind me. I whip around in time to yank Louis and Niall off the road next to me and Zayn. The taxi pulls up behind ours and I stomp over.

"What the hell?" I spit as I approach the driver side.

He rolls down the tinted window and I freeze in my tracks. Blue eyes stare up menacingly. He starts to get out of the car with a cold smile.

_HOLY FUCK._

I sprint back to our cab and yell at the boys to get in. They scramble into the backseat confusedly as I slide into the driver seat. I slam the door closed and Niall climbs up into the passenger side. I lock the doors just as the guy runs up and loads a handgun next to Niall's window. Our taxi driver knocks on my window and I roll it down just to toss a wad of money at him from my purse. I slam the gear into drive and the cab skids slightly before finding traction and jerking forwards leaving both men yelling after us.

"Who the fuck was that?!" Niall screams bewilderedly while Louis and Zayn are flattened to the backs of their seats in fear.

"That… was the pilot," I say breathlessly. "Secret agent…" I mutter.

"Ok, what just happened? Before we jumped out of the plane, and before planes started firing at _our_ plane?" Zayn demands exasperatedly.

"Well…" I pause to switch lanes and program the GPS on my phone.

"The pilot was a secret agent- working against us- and he left the cockpit, assuming that I would come looking for him. Lisbeth took over flying the plane, and he was hiding in a closet. He jumped out, we got in a fight, I won, he almost told me who he was working for, but then Paul came out and shot him. He fell out of the plane, and I assumed he was dead; obviously I was wrong.

Then other jets started firing at us and we don't know who they were or why they were shooting us. And then the engine died and we all jumped out of the plane, landed safely, and then he has to fucking turn up out of nowhere," I blab anxiously.

"Well, damn," Louis states in shock.

"We could've died! I'm so fucking stupid; I can't believe I didn't tell the agency… Who knows who that airport told about our flight? For all we know, it could've been in a damn newspaper!"

"Aria! It's not your fault, what's done is done. We're still alive-" Niall tries to reassure me.

"What the…?" I gasp as headlights are flashed at us and a taxi zooms dangerously close to our bumper.

I see the pilot's face contort into a satisfied smirk at my surprise and I take no time to step on the gas. Our vehicle revs forward and the boys twist around to see what's going on.

"Oh no…" Niall breathes as Louis puts on his seatbelt and pretends to pull on a helmet.

**This was actually going to be longer, I didnt end where I originally planned to! ****AND I LOVE EVERYONE READIN THIS AND REVIEWING BECAUSE YA'LL MAKE MY DAD SERIOUSLY. OOPS I MEANT DAY BUT IM TOO LAZY TO GO BACK AND FIX HAHHH REALLY HYPER I JUST MADE BROWNIES YOU GUYS DESERVE SOME BUT IDK WHERE YOU LIVE. YOU PROB DONT WANT ME TO KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE OR ELSE I MIGHT.. YA'KNOW. FORK YOUR YARD, EGG YOUR CAR, AND PUT ITCH POWDER IN YOUR BEAUTY PRODUCTS LOL.**

**i love you so much. te amo tan mucho (was that correct? haha im not fluent :P). je t'aime beaucoup. my birthday is on feb 3rd. (I SHARE WITH ELMOOO) AND HARRYS IS THE 1ST- OUR BBY WILL BE 19 D': AHHH**

**okkk..**

**to Katie: GIRL YOU ARE MAKING BLUSHHH :) good thing im in the dark haha i like writing in the dark idk why.. its just so isolated and i sound like a loner wow. haha but anyways thank you so much for the feedback its seriously brilliant to hear from my readers :) Molly should meet Zayn within the next two chapters! Haha yesh Lisam is so adorable hehe yayy USA ;D love youuu xxx**

**to Christa: thank you, love! SOrry it took so long to update :( xx**

**to Jocelyn: HAHAHAH i love you xD omg thats an awesome idea! I will have to do that ;) WHATTT NOVA SCOTIA THATS SO COOL I LOVE THE NAME HEHE i used to live in Maine we were kinda close! haha :P thank you for reviewing and being amazing as always :) xxx**

**to mah dearest Anne: HAHAHA you noticed the percentage ;) well ya know.. perverted minds think alike ;D yay canada! hehe do you like JB? that was random sorry i thought of canada and was like oh hes from there! :D BTW i watched Tyler Oakley and officially LOVE HIM. haha i have yet to watch something by Marcus Butler and Dexter though haha thank you for everything love ya xxxx**

**to Steve p.: haha im so sorry for not updating soon :P i hope you are still alive! we are all grandparents by now it took me so long xD haha thank you for reviewingggg! ive never been to missouri! is it nice? :) xxx**


	33. Chapter 31- Hot Pursuit

**Holy crap guys I put thhis one up on the other sites but I completely forgot to put it on here D: im so sorry! Ill put the next one up right now as well! xxx**

**Lisbeth's POV:  
January 24****th****, 10:05am Pacific Coast Time**

The taxi rambles over the rolling hills in the LA countryside. A dangerous looking gray cloud covers the sky as far as we can see and honestly at this point I just want someplace safe to pass out in. As we start to venture farther into the vast terrain a beautiful countryside manor comes into sight and I gasp in delight.

"Li, i-is that _our_ house?" I gape at the size and extravagance of the house.

Before Liam even gets the chance to answer, our taxi pulls up into the roundabout driveway and stops behind the fountain that sits in the center. Vannesa and Harry jump out eagerly and I duck out of the backseat right behind them. Paul steps out of the passenger side as Liam pays the cabdriver and comes up behind me.

"Do you like it?" Liam murmurs in my ear as he puts his hands on my waist.

"I can't even imagine what the inside looks like," I say truthfully and he places a kiss on my temple.

I pick up the sound of the taxi's tires crunching over loose gravel then what sounds like thunder in the distance. Soon the quick pitter-patter of rain becomes audible and Harry looks up at the sky with his tongue out.

"If all the little raindrops were lemon drops and gumdrops!" he sings happily and Vannesa snorts at his childish actions.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ahhhh!" Harry chases her down with his tongue out.

"Don't you dare lick me, Styles!" Vannesa warns.

"Oh please, you'd be begging for it," he winks suggestively. _She warned him…_ I think to myself a split second before he has his arms twisted behind his back and knees on the ground.

I laugh at his bad judgment before Liam takes my hand and we jog inside the house to stay dry.

**Vannesa's POV:**

"Right back atcha, Haz," I whisper teasingly before splashing a wave of fountain water into his face.

He gasps and looks up at me in shock. My eyes instinctively go to the thin white t-shirt clinging to his wet abdomen and I let out a whistle. A smirk appears predictively on his face and I smirk back.

"Sike!" I yell before darting towards the door to the house.

"You'll pay for this, Miss Bond!" he laughs good-naturedly but I don't doubt his words. Too bad for him I have a few tricks under my sleeve as well.

**Niall's POV:  
9:37am**

Aria puts the pedal to the medal and we jerk forwards on the road. We twist around to see the other cab chasing us down.

"Oh no…" I breathe anxiously. "That's one scary looking pilot."

"You can count on him being violent, too," Aria bites her lip in concentration as we catch up to traffic and enter the city.

She twists the wheel instinctively, swerving to pass cars and running red lights. Cars are honking their horns at us from every direction and the locals are stopping to stare from the sidewalks. At the next intersection, I look to our right just in time to see a car-

"Fuck!" Aria shouts as it crashes into the trunk and sends us spinning across the intersection, leaving us facing the wrong way.

Her hand starts bleeding again from our jet's shrapnel earlier and she wipes it nonchalantly on her now ripped up leggings. We all glance up to see the pilot grinning mercilessly and coming straight towards us. Aria wrenches the gear into reverse and the car trembles backwards before she slams it into drive again and does a U-turn. I glance into the rearview mirror and see him leaning out his window and… pointing at us?

The taxi hits a pothole and it takes me a second to refocus, "Aria, is he holding a-"

BANG! A gunshot rings out moments before sirens accompany the honking. I hear the chink of the bullet hitting somewhere on our car.

**Aria's POV:**

"Godammit-" I mutter as soon as I realize that the pilot is firing at our car now. I fumble around my waistband before finding the handle of my handgun and whipping it out.

"Niall, can you take the wheel?" I twist around in my seat and hold down the button to roll the window down.

Nothing.

_What the hell?!_

I spazz out pressing the button and give up, ending up just smashing the glass out with the butt of the gun. I take aim with nearly my whole upper body leaning out my window and pull the trigger-

_HONKKKKK!_

"CHRIST!" Niall blares the horn and veers around a pedestrian, causing my shot to hit the passenger side windshield of the pilot's taxi.

The glass cracks but doesn't shatter from the puncture. I see the red and blue police lights flashing behind his taxi and take advantage of the distraction. I slam my foot on the gas to try and increase our distance from him. Another shot rings out and seconds later I hear the splintering of glass. I plop back into my seat and take the wheel again.

"Is everyone ok? No injuries?" I inquire urgently.

"We're good…?" Zayn says weakly

The engine sputters briefly and sends adrenaline pumping through my veins. _Who knows what would happen if he caught up to us?_ We need a car. And there's one place I can call to get one right away. But they'll find out. Shit, what am I saying- they probably already know.

"Call Principal Hayes," I command Siri. I hush all the boys and wait three rings until-

"Where the h-" he starts but I cut him off. I still have to have him convinced that the boys don't know my identity.

"Hey, Uncle Hayes! I think that there is a drunken rogue stranger chasing us," code for an enemy agent. "and we are under fire and I could really use a better car since you have connections at the car rental here in LA."

A pause, "I'll get right on that… Aria. Get there as efficiently as possible. Stay safe, sweetie." I can almost hear him gagging on the endearing term.

I hang up and mutter, "My principal for ya…"

"Sounds like a sweet old man," Louis quips and I snort. I reprogram the GPS to take us to the rental place. It's like taking us through a tunnel… I don't even know anymore. Gotta trust it.

As we enter the tunnel I hear more gunshots ring out behind us. We all swivel around but to my delight the pilot is shooting the cops. Not that that's delightful or anything, it's just… rather the popo than me and One Direction. I see two police cars spin out and the third park. Next thing I know, the bullets are hitting our car. I can see the exit of the tunnel not too far ahead when suddenly a depressing noise echoes around the tunnel and our driving becomes really jostling. _Fucking flat tire._

Then it gets worse. The engine sputters out and our car stops moving altogether. For some godforsaken reason the steering wheel is locked into place and within seconds his bumper crashes into ours and propels us forward, never losing contact. As we get closer to the opening I realize that there's a fork in the road; one road continues in the tunnel, while the other leads towards daylight. And then I realize that he's pushing us straight towards the barrier dividing the two… The cement barrier that could easily cleave our taxi into half.

I let off the gas pedal which I just remembered I had been pressing down the entire time and the engine stops struggling. I look behind me and take in Louis' and Zayn's faces of withdrawal and accept. A take a sharp breath and turn to look at Niall.

His eyes are watery but his face still shows determination. He grabs my hand and gives it a tight squeeze.

_I owe these boys my life. I even signed a paper pledging so. A good agent doesn't give up until their heart stops beating and their brain has stopped thinking. _

_I can't stop here._

"Hold on tight," I say to no one in particular before closing my eyes and giving it my last shot.

I push the gear into reverse and slam the gas down farther than it was probably even designed to go. At this point we're probably going 80 miles per hour.

The wheels spin into action but can't find any traction. Adrenaline pumps through my veins as the distance from the barrier decreases rapidly.

_20 yards… 15…. 10… 5-_

I squeeze my eyes shut and slam the wheel all the way to the right. The tires skid and our trunk smashes into the pilot's hood. My eyes fly open as our taxi screeches in reverse away from the path of harm. His cab twists from the impact and skids horizontally into the barrier.

My mouth falls open as the agent's car crashes into the barrier and the crunch of metal echoes off the walls of the tunnel. The engine goes up in flames, burning the rest of the car- with the agent's body inside.

"Get out," is all I manage to say as the car dies and I stumble out of the car.

"I'm gonna be sick…" Louis gasps from behind me.

"We have to get to the rental place… it's only a few blocks from here," I instruct as I cock my gun and shoot through the hood of our taxi, igniting the engine.

We jog away as I hear popping and a small explosion.

"What was that for?" Zayn pants as we slow down and are almost at the car rental.

"Destroy all evidence. We don't like to interact with the cops…" I say absentmindedly. _Who was that agent?_

I flash an ID at the person behind the window and he hands me a set of keys. Within a minute we are situated in a shiny new black Range Rover.


	34. Chapter 32- New Beginnings

**kk this one is long, I'm so sorry for forgetting to update on this website :( I hope this makes up for it, i love you all for reading and reviewing x**

**Vannesa's POV:**

I hold the door open for Harry as he stomps in and shakes his hair like a wet dog.

"Agh! You're such a dick!" I exclaim as water sprays my face.

He grins mischievously and his dimples show as he unties his white Converse. I slam the door shut and kick off my soaking Supras sighing. I run a hand through my tangled curls before placing my Lakers snapback on my head again. I had miraculously been able to keep it through the whole jet incident.

"Where's the rest of our peeps?" Harry asks me as if I would know.

I chew on the inside of my cheek somewhat worriedly and completely uncharacteristically, "I don't know. Maybe the stopped for food…"

"Ah! That'd make sense. Wanna watch a movie?" he looks at me with bright emerald eyes, clearly not concerned for his bandmates.

"Sure," I give in, deciding I'm just shaken up from the somewhat out of the ordinary events we encountered today.

We end up on one of many couches in front of a large flat screen. Harry rummages through a cabinet full of movies and pulls out a comedy.

"How is there food and movies and everything here already?" I ask Harry as the TV loads.

"I dunno. The people that own it probably visit it pretty frequently so they probably want to have enough supplies here to live off of," Harry guesses and I shrug uncaringly.

About halfway through the movie, we officially declare it unworthy of our time.

"Watching Louis trying to draw Zayn is funnier than this!" Harry pouts and I can see easily how it would be.

Harry suddenly gets up and goes to a closet, returning with several blankets. He drapes one over the back of the couch to the couch opposite of it and I move out of the way. I stand off to the side, silently observing his handiwork, all the while suppressing a grin. Harry tosses a few pillows underneath and a fluffy blue comforter. He leaves the room suddenly, only to return with some Christmas lights.

I burst out laughing, "What the hell? Is there a Walmart in there or something?"

Harry looks up innocently with his eyebrows knitted together in confusion, "No, I found their Christmas decoration supply."

I laugh softly and help him untangle the strands. He puts them under his blanket structure and plugs it in. He steps back to admire his project before whipping out his phone.

"What is this…?" I inquire curiously, peeking my head inside.

"A blanket fort! Don't tell me you've never made one?" Harry gasps.

"Uh… no. My free times mostly consists of stalking bad guys and jumping out of airplanes," I wink.

Harry grabs my hand and leads me completely under the blanket fort. He takes a picture of me looking around and begins typing something.

"Tumblrstagram," he announces happily, and I see the screen in time to see him post the picture to Instagram.

"Harry," I begin patiently. "Tumblr is separate from Instagram, you can't put them together."

"I'm Harry. Harry Styles. And I can do what I want," he juts out his chin and I tackle him into the blankets, tossing a pillow at his head.

After much wrestling and giggling, the blanket fortress ends up collapsing on us and we have to put away all the blankets and lights. After folding and putting the last blanket in the closet, Harry walks to the kitchen and I hear the faint sound of the fridge door opening. I wander upstairs and check out the rest of the house. As I come down the stairs, voices echo down the hall from the front door. _They're back._

**Aria's POV:**

After calling Liam and figuring out the directions to the house, we finally pull into the roundabout and I park our rental. The rain hits the windshield relentlessly and rolls down in fat droplets. A crack of thunder shatters the rhythmic rain and sends one of the boys jumping. I blow out a breath and kill the engine.

"I need a drink," I mutter before getting out of the car and jogging inside.

My mind swarms with troubling thoughts as I push through the front door and kick off my now trashed combat boots (guess they didn't count on customers actually wearing them into combat). _Where's my dad? Is Michael ok? Who was the pilot working for? How was the pilot still alive? What is the agency going to do? What will Principal Hayes do to me?_

"Aria!" Lisbeth exclaims as I slam the car keys onto a marble countertop. "What on earth happened? Is everyone alright? How did you fall so far behind?"

"The pilot," I meet her eyes and press my lips in a firm line.

Her eyes widen in shock and Vannesa enters the kitchen just in time to hear my answer.

"What about him? Holy shit, don't tell me you ran over his body on the way here?!" Vannesa plops herself onto a barstool at the counter.

"He was alive. And he chased us through the city. I had to call the agency and tell Principal Hayes..." I trail off suddenly craving the vodka Harry is holding as he enters the kitchen.

"Who wants to play a good ole game of never have I ever?!" Harry hollers loudly.

The other boys are shucking off their wet and ruined clothes and I hear their shouts of agreement.

"Is there alcohol?" Niall questions as he walks wearily into the kitchen running a hand through his wet and darkened hair.

I eye his shirtless toned torso and biceps as he opens the fridge and pulls out all the drinks we have. We make brief eye contact before Louis breaks the connection and grabs a beer out of Niall's hands.

"Thanks, mate," he quips before popping it open and taking a giant gulp.

Zayn slips quietly past the doorframe and I take note of his behavior.

"I gotta check something," I say quickly to the girls before hopping off my stool and following Zayn noiselessly to a living room with an enormously tall ceiling and grand fireplace.

He turns into a bathroom and closes the door silently. I tiptoe worriedly up to the door and press my ear to the wood separating us. I hear a hiss of pain as something drops to the floor.

"Zayn?" I question concernedly.

I see his shadow freeze from the crack under the doorframe. I quickly remove a bobby pin from my hair and have the door unlocked within seconds. I push it open and Zayn comes into my view. His jacket is on the floor and he quickly pulls down his sleeves. I narrow my eyes in uncertainty.

"Zayn, are you ok?" I wait anxiously for his reply.

"Yeah," he replies stiffly.

"Are you sure...?"

"Just stressed out... Things like that don't usually happen to us..."

"I'm so sorry," I say quietly. "It's entirely my fault. I need to figure something else out. I'm just causing people more trouble here-"

"It's fine," he cuts me off and looks me in the eye for the first time. "Really. It's not your fault you've got all the psychos coming after you."

We both almost smile. Almost.

I slowly turn to leave but notice the awkward position of Zayn's right arm.

"Oh shit! Zayn!" I rush forward and take his arm gingerly into my hands, pushing up the sleeve as fast as I dare. _Yep, that's a fractured wrist._ He cringes and looks away when I look up at him.

"Why the hell am I just finding out about this?" He shrugs embarrassedly.

My phone buzzes annoyingly and I check it reluctantly. _Molly._

"C'mon, put your shoes back on. We have to go to the hospital," I tell him before answering my phone.

"Hey, Mol. What's up?"

"Your dad covers his tracks really well. Let's not go into details over the phone, but can we meet up somewhere?"

"We're renting a house in the countryside. I'll text you the address. See you in a few."

"Thanks, bye."

We all gather in the kitchen and decide to wait until Molly arrives to go to the hospital and get drunk. Not necessarily in that order.

Molly arrives shortly and walks in perfectly dry before closing her hot pink umbrella.

"Lisbeth!" She squeals and embraces Lizzy in a tight hug. "I missed you so much!"

After exchanging a few words she turns to Vannesa, "You must be Vannesa?"

"You got it," Vannesa sticks out her hand awkwardly but Molly ignores it and hugs her instead.

"It's so nice to meet you! Sounds like you'd be a fun person to break into a house with," Molly winks and Vannesa gives me a look that says 'what did you tell her about me'.

After Molly's greetings and mini fangirl spazz attack, I pull her aside.

"I know it's a lot to ask since you just got here and all, but do you think you could take Zayn to the hospital? He broke his arm on the way here."

After explaining the whole car chase and rogue pilot situation, Molly agrees and let's just say she's probably more excited than she should be (for a hospital trip anyways).

"Hey, Zayn, Molly's gonna take you to the hospital if that's ok? I've had my share of driving today," I sigh and Zayn nods, a blush creeping onto his tan face.

"I think I'm going to be out for the night, I know some old friends that live around here. I'm taking a taxi into the city. Don't get too drunk and don't burn the house down," Paul pokes his head into the kitchen before I hear the door close after him.

I toss Molly the keys to her rental Audi and smile at her enthusiasm.

"Stay safe, call the house if anything weird happens," I tell her.

After Zayn and Molly leave, the rest of the drinks are broken out and we're all quick to take one.

"Should someone stay sober? Or maybe just like half sober just in case something comes up like with Roch or Michael or something?" I ask no one in particular.

"I'll do it," Liam volunteers himself.

I nod in approval before Lizzy catches my eye and pulls out an all too familiar orange bottle of pills.

"Oh no way in hell am I taking one of those today, woman. I'm getting wasted," I shake my head, completely against the idea of not being able to get drunk. To prove my point I take a huge gulp of whatever is closest to me and it burns my throat all the way down.

She just rolls her eyes and pops a pill in her mouth instead.

"Party pooper," Vannesa mouths and I giggle uncontrollably.

She comes over and links her arm through mine, guiding me unsteadily to the living room where Louis, Harry and Niall lounge with drinks in hand.

"And they arrive at last!" Louis shouts loudly.

Vannesa and I collapse into another fit of giggles as we take a seat on the plush couch across from the boys.

"Ok! Never have I ever..." Niall starts. "Drank underage." He smiles devilishly at me and Vannesa.

"Fuck you," Vannesa says before taking a careless swig of her drink.

"That's no fair! The drinking age in Ireland is probably like 8 years old!" I pout.

"13, actually," Niall smirks.

"Same difference. Just as irresponsible," I roll my eyes and take a large sip.

A few rounds later and all my thoughts are blurred together. It takes me three times as long as normal to process what Louis is saying.

"Never have I ever," Louis pauses and looks at me. "Kissed Aria."

"Oops," Niall chuckles and raises his bottle towards me before drinking.

Harry takes a sip, apparently still coherent enough to remember that we "dated" for like 2 days.

Vannesa drinks from the corner of my eye and I turn to her in shock with the rest of the boys.

"You guys kissed?" Niall says dumbfounded.

"What? Ohhh, that was the question..." Vannesa slurs before planting a sloppy kiss on my cheek.

I wipe my cheek before fake swooning.

"Now I have!" Vannesa winks before taking another gulp of alcohol.

"I'm the only one..." Louis pouts.

"Damn girl, you get around," Vannesa jokes but no one denies it. I don't either.

Alcohol fuzzing my brain, I speak without thinking, "Feeling left out?" I tease Louis.

He clenches his jaw momentarily before getting up and making his way towards me. Next thing I know, Lou is standing over me. I can't tell if he tripped or if it was intentional and while I ponder, I feel his lips mash against mine. I pull back at first in shock, but slowly relax into the sensation of his mouth moving in sync with mine.

I hear a cat whistle and Vannesa claps beside me.

"Get a room," an Irish accent mutters irritably before footsteps follow out of the room.

Louis pulls out of the kiss and offers me a hand.

"Where are we going?" I slur involuntarily.

"To finish things," Louis replies vaguely.

He leads me up the stairs and I wave innocently down at Vannesa who is now practically sitting on Harry.

"Get some!" She yells and Harry laughs.

"Some what?" I say more to myself, my brain not functioning properly. "It's really hot up here."

"Take of your clothes then," Louis jokes and I stick my tongue out at him.

_Maybe Vannesa was telling me to get some ice cream! Yummy vanilla ice cream... Yum yum, yummy yum yum yum, yum yu-_

"C'mon, love," Louis interrupts my thoughts and guides me into a huge bedroom.

As soon as the door is closed behind me, Louis' lips attach once more to mine in a flurry of desire. He presses me against a wall and coolness seeps through my still damp shirt. One struggling thought manages to escape my alcohol shrouded mind and my mouth pulls away from Louis' to voice it.

"I can't."

"Why not?" Louis says exasperatedly.

"It's not right."

"But kissing Harry, even Niall, is?"

"But you're like a brother!" I blurt.

"You wouldn't find a brother attractive," he states.

"And...?"

"Don't tell me that you aren't even a _little_ bit attracted to me," Louis raises and eyebrow and tenses his arm muscles on either side of my head to hold himself up parallel to the wall.

I bite my lip, finding it impossible to hide my thoughts while intoxicated. "Well then I'd be lying," I murmur.

Lust swirls in his turquoise eyes before he traces a hand down the side of my face, across my collarbones and down my waist, sending tingles up and down my spine.

"Let me make you feel good, Aria," Louis whispers, his hands roaming underneath my shirt.

"Mhmm," I murmur consent instinctively.

Louis attacks my lips fervently, one hand tangled in my hair. He tugs on my lip, begging for entrance but I don't give in to the temptation just yet. I slip my hands under his hoodie and skim my hands over his hot smooth back.

Louis grinds his hips into mine and I moan involuntarily. He takes advantage of my vulnerability and slips his tongue into my mouth, deepening the kiss. Lust consumes my body and he moves his lips to my neck. He sucks and nips the sensitive skin, surely leaving marks that'll show later. With Louis' mouth still attached to my neck, his hands pull at the hem of my shirt before I take it off and slip it over my head. I drop it on the floor and let the alcohol fuel my actions.

My hands fumble with the zipper on Louis' hoodie before yanking it down. Louis shrugs it off his shoulders and I'm relieved to see he doesn't have any more layers on. In my drunken state every action seems three times as difficult. Our bodies radiate heat and I wrap my arms around Louis' neck, bringing his lips to mine in a frenzy of desire.

His hands slip behind my back and unclasp my bra, flinging it carelessly to the side. He presses his body against mine and his hot skin leaves me craving more. Louis lifts me up by my thighs and carries me over to the bed.

He lays me on the mattress, our lips never losing contact as he hovers over me, leaving sloppy kisses all over my collarbone. I keep my legs wrapped around Lou's waist and my hands in his hair as he moves north to my face again. His hot breath smells strongly of alcohol as it splays over my face, although I'm sure mine does, too.

Louis holds my waist intimately and I arch my back, lusting for more contact. He leans down and presses dangerously seductive kisses on the corner of my mouth. Moans fall from my mouth before Louis covers it with his own, muffling my audible pleasure.

All my thoughts swirl blindly and my brain can no longer make any logical decisions. I let the hunger and raw desire for Louis' body consume me as he hooks his fingers in my panties and pulls them down without hesitation. I wanted him. And he knew it.

**Zayn's POV:  
Hospital in LA, 1:15pm**

I sat nervously in the waiting room with Molly as we waited for the results of my x-rays to come out. Everything from the fluorescent lights to the matching scrubs every nurse and doctor wears freaks me out about hospitals. Maybe it's the freakish organization and sterile environment that sets me on edge, but whatever it is has me feeling sick.

"Are you sure you're ok?" Molly asks not for the first time.

"No. I feel like shit," I laugh nervously and she makes a sympathetic face.

"It'll be over soon. Then we can get drunk and forget about it all..."

"Until tomorrow anyways," I sigh.

"Until tomorrow might be enough," she squeezes my good hand reassuringly.

"So you and Aria are really close, yeah?" I change the subject and try to mentally calm my heartbeat.

"Like sisters. Can't remember the last time we _really_ got mad at each other. If we did she probably drugged me so I wouldn't remember it though. Or vice versa," Molly adds with a mischievous smile.

I laugh and lower my voice, "You crazy secret agent people... You should've seen the stunts they all pulled this morning. The airplane, parachuting, the car chase! How can that be some people's regular lifestyle?" I wonder aloud.

"They thrive on rushes of adrenaline; always on the move and looking for action," she looks thoughtful. "We're all like that before they recruit us. They come looking for the kids who aren't afraid to do a double-dog-dare and get in trouble."

"Mr. Malik? We have the results," a nurse in typical mint green scrubs pokes her head into the waiting room.

After getting my wrist in a cast, the nurse tells me to come back in 5-6 days to check the progress and I should be completely healed within three weeks. My wrist is broken but it's an "easy fix" according to the doctors.

Molly and I duck our heads in attempt to lessen the rain that hits us as we run to the Range Rover.

"I could use a cheesesteak about now. What say you?" Molly starts the engine.

"That sounds brilliant actually," I reply eagerly, just noticing the hunger gnawing at my stomach.

After we sit down with our subs in a small sandwich shop, I waste no time chowing down my food. I'm done within minutes and realize I haven't eaten since a muffin way early this morning.

"Holy crap! What did you inhale your food just now or what?!" Molly exclaims in shock.

I find myself blushing but either she doesn't notice or chooses to ignore it.

"And you're so skinny, too! I hate people like you," she jokingly adds. "Do you want my fries? Chips, whatever they're called."

I decline her offer and we are just making small talk when I see a bright flash outside the window.

"Oh shit," I gasp at the sight of a growing number of paparazzi. _They'll freak about me even spending time with Molly. They can't find out who she is._

"¡Vamos, chico!" Molly yells before running to the counter and asking to use the back entrance.

The bell on the door jingles and I see more flashes of light. I don't risk a look back as I sprint behind Molly. We burst out onto a street over from the road that the Range Rover is parked on.

"I think it's that way!" I point around a corner.

Molly grabs my left hand and pulls me along, her blonde hair flying wildly behind her. When she glances back at me she's grinning and I shoot her a weird look. Then her eyes widen and I can hear a thunder of feet behind us. Relief washes over me as I spot the silver Audi not far ahead. Adrenaline pushes my legs forward and soon we're flinging the doors open and jumping inside.

I slam the door shut and Molly locks all the doors with the click of a button. She fumbles through her purse and slides on a pair of sunglasses. She pulls her hair into a sloppy bun on the top of her head before hurriedly putting in the key and turning the ignition. The first paps catch up as she slams the clutch into reverse and then into drive as we pull into the busy city traffic. Maneuvering past slow cars, we take a long route to lose any persistent paparazzi.

"That was fun," Molly laughs once we're on the road to the house.

"Are you serious?" I ask dumbfounded.

"Hell yeah! Doesn't it get you so excited?" She removes her glasses and glances over at me. "They'll have seen your wrist for sure." She adds on a more serious note.

"And you," I mumble worriedly.

"So? What can they do? 'Zayn Malik seen with weird blonde girl and broken wrist... Possible catfight?'," Molly teases with an amused look.

I give a stern glare, "I just don't want the media trying to hurt you or me or our- our friendship."

An eyebrow raise.

"We're friends, right?" I question anxiously.

"Ohmygosh Zayn Malik is asking if we're friends. Brb screaming internally and then agreeing calmly," she jokes in a valley girl accent but excitement flickers in her bright blue eyes.

I chuckle and roll my eyes.

"It'll be fine, Zayn. Nothing I can't handle," Molly reassures me as we park in front of the house.

I study her porcelain skin and soft lips, almost believing she was as fragile as she looked. But I knew better.

"I hope so, love," I quip and hop out of the car before running through the rain to the house.

**Aria's POV:  
The next "morning" (January 25****th****)**

The clock shows a blurred 2:09am and I blink to make sure I'm seeing right. My head pounds and my throat is so dry that I can't even swallow. _These are nice sheets, _I think grasping a fistful of silk fabric and suddenly noticing my location.

_Holy…_

I sit up and the sheets fall down exposing a t-shirt that is most definitely not mine, and no pants. Thankfully some panties but that's not saying much. I turn slowly to my left, head spinning. I squeeze my eyes shut, praying that this isn't happening.

"Louis?" I croak warily.

He shifts and rolls over, brown hair falling in his eyes. He groans and holds his head in his hands as he sits up. His tanned torso comes into view and I really don't want to know if he has any pants on or not.

Suspecting the latter, I slide out of the bed and try to collect my clothing that's strewn across the floor.

"How far?" I say just above a whisper. _We can't have… No, no no no. But I was so drunk. And Louis obviously wants me._

"I honestly don't know…" Louis whispers back after a moment.

I sigh in frustration at myself for drinking so much without a pill.

_Oh my god. I'm not on _that _pill._


End file.
